Unaffiliated gubernatorial candidate Greg Lopez, a former Republican congressman from Elizabeth who left the GOP to run as an independent, has qualified for the ballot by submitting enough petition signatures, the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office said Tuesday.

He’ll face Democratic nominee Phil Weiser, the state’s two-term attorney general, and Republican Victor Marx, a first-time candidate who runs a Christian ministry in Colorado Springs, as well as several candidates who belong to minor political parties.

Lopez and his pick for lieutenant governor, Taralyn Romero, a Jefferson County property rights activist and health care worker, needed to turn in 1,000 valid signatures from registered voters in each of the state’s eight congressional districts, for a total of 8,000, to make the statewide ballot. Election officials said 11,948 of the 14,723 signatures they submitted were valid.

Lopez represented Colorado’s 4th Congressional District for the last six months of 2024 after winning a special election to fill the vacancy created when former U.S. Rep. Ken Buck resigned mid-term. He didn’t seek election to a full term in the state’s most heavily Republican seat, which is anchored by Douglas County and covers the Eastern Plains.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, a Windsor Republican, won election in the 4th CD in 2024 after moving across the state from a more competitive seat. She’s running for another term there this year.

After seeking the Republican nomination for governor for more than a year, Lopez told Colorado Politics in January that he’d decided to leave the GOP and run as an independent after concluding that neither political party held the answers to the state’s woes.

“The system itself is broken,” Lopez said. “Both parties raise money better than they solve problems. They divide better than they listen.”

When he launched his independent campaign, Lopez noted that he left the Democratic Party to become a Republican in the mid-1990s, when he was serving as mayor of Parker. Like then, he said, he wasn’t changing his values, just his party affiliation.

“I’m staying true to who I’ve always been; I’m simply changing who I answer to,” Lopez said. “Why now? Because unaffiliated voters are now the largest voice in Colorado, and the problems we face won’t wait for another cycle of partisan excuses.”

Lopez told Colorado Politics in a written statement that he was grateful to the voters, volunteers and election staff who had a hand in his petition effort.

“This campaign is giving voters an independent choice grounded in People Over Politics, Do No Harm and Do What Works,” Lopez said. “We look forward to debating the issues, presenting practical solutions and earning the trust and support of Coloradans across the state”

The Marx campaign said it’s working to “(build) the broadest possible coalition of Republicans, unaffiliated voters, and anyone who believes Colorado can do better.”

“Our focus isn’t on other campaigns,” Marx spokesperson Rachael Flick said in an emailed statement. “It’s on earning the trust of the people of Colorado by talking about the issues that matter most to them – affordability, public safety, government accountability, education, and creating greater opportunity across our state.”

Added Flick: “At the end of the day, this election isn’t about the past or about internal party politics. It’s about Colorado’s future, and that’s where our focus will remain.”

Weiser’s campaign said the Democrat is looking forward to the general election.

“Phil Weiser is the only candidate in this race with the leadership and vision to lower the cost of living, protect Coloradans’ rights and freedoms, and build a brighter future for the next generation,” Weiser spokesman Nate Jackson said in a text message. “As governor, Phil will deliver results for all Coloradans.”

Although Colorado has never elected an independent governor, with just over 50% of the state’s electorate registered as unaffiliated, Lopez said he hopes he can appeal to voters who are unhappy with both major political parties.

Colorado voters have only elected one Republican governor in the last 50 years — when Bill Owens held the office for two terms, from 1999 to 2007 — and Democrats have swept every statewide race since 2016.