Colorado Politics

 Colorado Democrat John Hickenlooper lands support from trio of local labor unions

Three local labor unions endorsed U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper’s bid for reelection this week, calling the Colorado Democrat a proven champion of the state’s workers and their rights. Hickenlooper’s campaign announced endorsements on Tuesday from SMART Sheet Metal Workers Local...

 Colorado lawmakers pass bill negating road-funding ballot measure

Colorado lawmakers on Wednesday approved a last‑minute amendment to a bill crafted to counter a ballot measure requiring that public funds collected for “road transportation” go to “road transportation,” setting up a high‑stakes clash over street funding and public services....

 Colorado Democrat Jason Crow calls on House leadership to ban trading on prediction markets

U.S. Rep. Jason Crow on Monday joined a bipartisan call asking House Speaker Mike Johnson to adopt new rules banning the chamber’s lawmakers, their families and staff from participating in prediction markets, in a move the Aurora Democrat said can...

 Colorado legislators ask voters to forfeit thousands in TABOR refunds, redirect money to school spending

A Democratic‑backed proposal to direct money to K‑12 schools using Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights dollars is headed to the ballot, setting up a major debate over taxpayer refunds and long‑term education funding. If voters approve it, the average Coloradan would...

 Colorado legislators abandon proposal targeting natural gas initiative

Colorado lawmakers pulled back plans to counter a proposed constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right of consumers to use natural gas. The bill’s backers said the legislation would not have significantly affected the initiative’s impact, even as debate intensifies among environmental...

 Colorado Politics’ 8th CD primary debate canceled after Democrat Shannon Bird withdraws 

Organizers on Tuesday canceled next week’s Democratic primary debate in Colorado’s toss-up 8th Congressional District after former state Rep. Shannon Bird withdrew, leaving just one candidate planning to take the stage. Three Democrats are seeking the nomination in the state’s...

 Ron Hanks, Scott Bottoms sue to stop Colorado’s unaffiliated voters from participating in GOP primary

Three Republican candidates in Colorado filed a lawsuit in Denver District Court this week seeking to prevent unaffiliated voters from participating in next month’s GOP primary, arguing that the state’s semi-open primary system violates their constitutional rights by forcing Republicans...

 Latest Pinnacol proposal shifts sponsors and cuts state benefits, triggers union standoff

Colorado’s long‑running bid to let Pinnacol Assurance break away from state control is suddenly in jeopardy, as a newly revised bill — stripped of the payouts and structural changes once central to the deal — has triggered fresh tensions among...

 Victor Marx, Phil Weiser lead Colorado gubernatorial fundraising, as all campaigns’ hauls top $20 million

Colorado gubernatorial candidates and the independent expenditure committees backing them hauled in more than $20 million between them by the end of April, as the primary election approaches, according to campaign finance reports filed this week. Republican Victor Marx and...

 Lone Tree City Council to welcome 2 new members

Lone Tree City Council elections concluded Tuesday, with two new members set to join the council once final results are certified later this month. Michelle Béchamps and Tara Meekma Collins defeated their opponents to serve as District 1 and District...

 Fight over road funding intensifies as Democrats seek to negate citizen initiative

The battle over road funding intensified at the state Capitol this week, where legislators are seeking to negate an initiative that supporters say is sorely needed but which critics insist would divert money from other state priorities. Supporters of the...

 Democrat Jena Griswold holds wide lead in Colorado attorney general primary, her internal poll shows

Democratic attorney general candidate Jena Griswold, Colorado’s term-limited secretary of state, holds a wide lead over her three primary opponents just weeks before ballots are set to go out to voters, a new internal poll released by her campaign on...

 Crank challenger Jessica Killin named to House Democrats’ ‘Red to Blue’ program in Colorado’s 5th CD

The House Democrats’ campaign arm on Monday added Jessica Killin to its nationwide “Red to Blue” program in Colorado’s Republican-leaning 5th Congressional District, calling the first-time candidate a “top-tier” challenger in a seat the party is aiming to flip in...

 Colorado bill prohibits credit card companies from charging ‘swipe fees’ on sales taxes

Colorado senators on Wednesday voted to advance a proposal to eliminate credit card “swipe fees” on sales taxes. Proponents say the move would save businesses tens of thousands of dollars annually, while critics have countered those fees are needed to...

 Colorado GOP request to block unaffiliated voters from receiving Republican primary ballots denied by judge

A federal judge on Tuesday denied the Colorado Republican Party’s request for an emergency injunction barring unaffiliated voters from participating in the state’s upcoming Republican primary election. U.S. District Court Judge Philip A. Brimmer said that preventing unaffiliated voters from...

 Colorado taxpayers would lose thousands in TABOR refunds under Democrats’ proposed ballot measure

A nonpartisan analysis of a proposed ballot measure that seeks to increase public education spending by tapping Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refunds shows that about 75% of what would otherwise go to Colorado residents wouldn’t actually go to K-12 schools....

 Boebert challenger Eileen Laubacher, Republican Gabe Evans lead Colorado’s quarterly House fundraising

The Democrat challenging U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert in Colorado’s most solidly Republican congressional district again posted the state’s biggest fundraising numbers for the most recent quarter, while Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans, who is defending the state’s lone toss-up seat,...

 Colorado data‑privacy bill fails after sponsors shift it to a ballot measure

A Colorado bill aimed at restricting law enforcement and private companies from purchasing personal data without a warrant failed to advance Wednesday after a 6–5 vote in the House Judiciary Committee. The proposal, originally titled the “Fourth Amendment Is Not...

 Colorado congressional elections see over $9M in ad reserves from House Democrats’ super PAC

Meanwhile, Republican group reserves $5.5 million in Denver market The leading House Democratic super PAC is booking more than $9 million in fall TV and digital advertising across three Colorado media markets as part of an aggressive move to win...

 Colorado GOP asks judge to bar state from sending Republican primary ballots to unaffiliated voters

The Colorado Republican Party on Monday asked a federal judge to issue an emergency injunction to prevent the state’s unaffiliated voters from being able to cast ballots in the GOP’s upcoming primary election. Lawyers for the party argue in a...

 Colorado Senate candidate charged with felony child neglect after daughter nearly drowns in Florida pool, police say

Frederick Alfred, Jr., the sole Republican candidate for Senate District 21 in the June primary and November general election, was arrested in Key West, Florida, late Monday night. Alfred, 38, was charged with two counts of felony child neglect and...

 Colorado lawmakers set Jan. 11 start date for 2027 General Assembly

Legislative leaders on Tuesday confirmed that the 2027 session of the Colorado General Assembly will begin on Monday, Jan. 11. Ordinarily, legislative sessions start on the second Wednesday in January. That schedule shifts in years when a new governor is...

 Proposal to ban appointed Colorado legislators from serving in next term fails to advance

For the third year in a row, lawmakers have struck down a proposal that would have prohibited members of the Colorado General Assembly who were appointed through a vacancy committee from serving in the term immediately after. Sponsored by Rep....

 Colorado body reviews redistricting proposals as battle heats up nationwide

With 60 proposals on the April 15 agenda, Colorado’s title board wrapped up its final initial hearing for the 2026 election cycle, sending forward a slate of measures that could reshape workers’ compensation and reignite partisan battles over congressional redistricting....

 Lincoln – Pragmatic, persistent, partisan coalition-builder | Tom Cronin

Abraham Lincoln was assassinated 161 years ago this week, six days after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered at the Appomattox Court House in Virginia. Lincoln was 56 years old. Lee was 58 years old. Lincoln, generally regarded as our best...

 Colorado justices weigh constitutionality of unique disclosure requirement for ballot measures

Members of the Colorado Supreme Court considered on Tuesday whether a unique feature of the state’s campaign finance system categorically violates the First Amendment by requiring the disclosure of a ballot measure committee’s legal representative on advertisements. No on EE...

 Republicans Scott Bottoms, Victor Marx win spots in Colorado gubernatorial primary at party assembly

Two Christian ministry leaders from Colorado Springs qualified Saturday for the Republican gubernatorial primary ballot at the Colorado GOP’s state assembly in Pueblo in a party meeting that dragged late into the night. State Rep. Scott Bottoms, an Assemblies of...

 Colorado House finishes work on 2026-27 state budget, finally

The House on Saturday, after four days of work – it usually takes two – finished up their work and voted on the $46.8 billion 2026-27 state budget, as contained in House Bill 1410 and 64 accompanying measures designed to...

 What you need to know about the Colorado legislature reading a 661-page bill aloud

A rarely used procedural move by a Republican legislator threw the Colorado House into an extended slowdown, after she invoked her right to have a nearly 700-page state budget bill read aloud in full. Once Rep. Brandi Bradley, R‑Roxborough Park,...

 Colorado GOP votes down bid to ask court to prevent unaffiliated voters from voting in June primary

Members of the Colorado Republican Party’s executive committee rejected a proposal Thursday night to seek an emergency injunction in federal court to prevent unaffiliated voters from participating in the state’s upcoming June primary election. The proposed motion, backed by Colorado...