Colorado's 4th Congressional District election, 2016
2018 →
← 2014
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November 8, 2016 |
June 28, 2016 |
Ken Buck  |
Ken Buck |
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Cook Political Report: Solid R[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe R[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe R[3] |
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The 4th Congressional District of Colorado held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 8, 2016.
Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Ken Buck (R) defeated Bob Seay (D), Bruce Griffith (L), and Donald Howbert (R write-in) in the general election on November 8, 2016. No candidate faced a primary opponent in June.[4][5][6]
| Candidate Filing Deadline | Primary Election | General Election |
|---|---|---|
Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election.
Colorado utilizes a semi-closed primary system. According to Section 1-7-201 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, "An eligible unaffiliated elector, including a preregistrant who is eligible under section 1-2-101 (2)(c), is entitled to vote in the primary election of a major political party without affiliating with that political party."[7][8]
For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.
Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Ken Buck (R), who was first elected in 2014.
As of the 2010 redistricting cycle, Colorado's 4th Congressional District was located in eastern Colorado and included Baca, Bent, Cheyenne, Crowley, Elbert, Kiowa, Kit Carson, Las Animas, Lincoln, Logan, Morgan, Otero, Phillips, Prowers, Sedgwick, Washington, and Yuma counties. The district also included portions of Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, and Weld counties. [9]
Election results
General election
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  Ken Buck Incumbent |
63.5% | 248,230 | |
| Democratic | Bob Seay | 31.7% | 123,642 | |
| Libertarian | Bruce Griffith | 4.8% | 18,761 | |
| Total Votes | 390,633 | |||
| Source: Colorado Secretary of State | ||||
Candidates
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General election candidates: Ken Buck   Bob Seay Bruce Griffith Donald Howbert (Write-in) |
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Primary candidates:[10] |
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Democratic |
Republican |
District history
2014
The 4th Congressional District of Colorado held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Cory Gardner (R) did not seek re-election in 2014. He instead ran for election to the U.S. Senate. Ken Buck (R) defeated Vic Meyers (D), Jess Loban (L) and Grant Doherty (I) in the general election.
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ken Buck |
64.7% | 185,292 | |
| Democratic | Vic Meyers | 29.2% | 83,727 | |
| Libertarian | Jess Loban | 3.3% | 9,472 | |
| Independent | Grant Doherty | 2.8% | 8,016 | |
| Total Votes | 286,507 | |||
| Source: Colorado Secretary of State | ||||
2012
The 4th Congressional District of Colorado held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Incumbent Cory Gardner won re-election in the district.[12]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Brandon Shaffer | 36.8% | 125,715 | |
| Republican | Cory Gardner Incumbent |
58.4% | 199,842 | |
| Libertarian | Josh Gilliland | 3.1% | 10,674 | |
| Constitution | Doug Aden | 1.7% | 5,845 | |
| Total Votes | 342,076 | |||
| Source: Colorado Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election" | ||||
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Colorado elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Colorado in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description | |
| April 4, 2016 | Ballot access | Last day for major/minor party candidates to file candidate petitions for the primary election | |
| April 20, 2016 | Ballot access | Last day for write-in candidates to file affidavits of intent for the primary election | |
| June 28, 2016 | Election date | Primary election | |
| July 14, 2016 | Ballot access | Last day for unaffiliated candidates to file nomination petitions for the general election | |
| July 21, 2016 | Ballot access | Last day for write-in candidates to file affidavits of intent for the general election | |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election | |
| Source: Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 Election Calendar," accessed October 28, 2015 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Colorado, 2016
- United States House of Representatives elections, 2016
Footnotes
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2016 House Race Ratings for July 11, 2016," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ Sabato's Crystal Ball, "2016 House," accessed July 18, 2016
- ↑ Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, "House Ratings," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Election Candidate List," accessed May 2, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Colorado House Primaries Results," June 28, 2016
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2016 General Election Candidate List," accessed September 5, 2016
- ↑ LexisNexis, "Colorado Revised Statutes § 1-7-201," accessed August 6, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Primary Elections FAQs," accessed August 6, 2025
- ↑ United States Census Bureau, "Counties by Congressional Districts," accessed June 8, 2016
- ↑ Candidates are listed by party and alphabetically within each party.
- ↑ Bob for Colorado, "Home," accessed November 23, 2015
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Colorado," November 6, 2012
For information about public policy issues in the 2016 elections, see: Public policy in the 2016 elections!
