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Colorado House of Representatives elections, 2018
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 29[2]
- Early voting: Mail ballots available Oct. 5
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: Yes
- Voter ID: Non-photo ID required for in-person voting
- Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
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| 2018 Colorado House elections | |
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| General | November 6, 2018 |
| Primary | June 26, 2018 |
| Past election results |
| 2016・2014・2012・2010・2008 2006・2004・2002・2000 |
| 2018 elections | |
|---|---|
| Choose a chamber below: | |
Democrats expanded their majority in the 2018 elections for the Colorado House of Representatives, winning 41 seats to Republicans' 24. All 65 House seats were up for election. At the time of the election, Democrats held 36 seats to Republicans' 29.
Ballotpedia identified nine of the races as battlegrounds, including six Democratic-held districts and three Republican-held districts. Democrats won all nine of the battleground elections.
Heading into the election, Colorado had been under divided government since 2014 when Republicans took control of the Colorado State Senate. This broke the state's Democratic trifecta that first formed after the 2012 elections when Democrats won the state House after losing it to Republicans in 2010.
Democrats needed to win the state Senate to have a trifecta, while Republicans needed to win the state House and the governorship. The last Republican trifecta in Colorado lasted from 2003 to 2004. Had the Republican Party taken control of the chamber, it would have prevented the formation of a Democratic trifecta in Colorado.
The Colorado House of Representatives was one of 87 state legislative chambers with elections in 2018. There are 99 chambers throughout the country. The Colorado House of Representatives was one of 22 state legislative battleground chambers identified by Ballotpedia in the 2018 elections. Read more below.
Colorado state representatives serve two-year terms, with all seats up for election every two years.
For more information about the Democratic primaries, click here.
For more information about the Republican primaries, click here.
Post-election analysis
- See also: State legislative elections, 2018
The Democratic Party gained control of both chambers of the Colorado General Assembly in the 2018 election after flipping the Colorado State Senate. Both chambers of the Colorado General Assembly were identified as battleground chambers. In the state Senate, 17 out of 35 seats were up for election. Democrats gained a majority in the Colorado State Senate by gaining three net seats. Before the election, Democrats held 16 seats, Republicans held 18 seats, and an independent held one seat. Following the election, Democrats held 19 seats and Republicans held 16 seats. Two Republican incumbents were defeated in the general election.
The Colorado House of Representatives held elections for all 65 seats. The Democratic majority in the House of Representatives increased from 36-29 to 41-24. Two Republican incumbents were defeated in the primary and two Republican incumbents were defeated in the general election.
National background
On November 6, 2018, 87 of the nation's 99 state legislative chambers held regularly scheduled elections for 6,073 of 7,383 total seats, meaning that nearly 82 percent of all state legislative seats were up for election.
- Entering the 2018 election, Democrats held 42.6 percent, Republicans held 56.8 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.6 percent of the seats up for regular election.
- Following the 2018 election, Democrats held 47.3 percent, Republicans held 52.3 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.4 percent of the seats up for regular election.
- A total of 469 incumbents were defeated over the course of the election cycle, with roughly one-third of them defeated in the primary.
Want more information?
- Incumbents defeated in 2018's state legislative elections
- 2018 election analysis: Partisan balance of state legislative chambers
- 2018 election analysis: Number of state legislators by party
- 2018 election analysis: State legislative supermajorities
Districts
- See also: Colorado state legislative districts
Use the interactive map below to find your district.
Candidates
General election candidates
Paul Haddick (District 14), Kim Bishop (District 32), and Dahlia Jean Weinstein (District 41) unofficially withdrew from their races before the general election. Because they withdrew after the deadline on September 10, 2018, their names still appeared on the ballot. All votes for Weinstein were counted as votes for Lynn Myers.[3]
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection
Primary election candidates
The candidate list below is based on a candidate filing list provided by the Colorado Secretary of State on May 3, 2018. The filing deadline for the June primary was on March 20, 2018. (I) denotes an incumbent.[4]
Margins of victory
A margin of victory (MOV) analysis for the 2018 Colorado House of Representatives races is presented in this section. MOV represents the percentage of total votes that separated the winner and the second-place finisher. For example, if the winner of a race received 47 percent of the vote and the second-place finisher received 45 percent of the vote, the MOV is 2 percent.
The table below presents the following figures for each party:
- Elections won
- Elections won by less than 10 percentage points
- Elections won without opposition
- Average margin of victory[6]
| Colorado House of Representatives: 2018 Margin of Victory Analysis | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Elections won | Elections won by less than 10% | Unopposed elections | Average margin of victory[6] |
| Democratic |
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| Republican |
||||
 Other |
||||
| Total | ||||
The margin of victory in each race is presented below. The list is sorted from the closest MOV to the largest (including unopposed races).
Seats flipped
The below map displays each seat in the Colorado House of Representatives which changed partisan hands as a result of the 2018 elections, shaded according to the partisan affiliation of the winner in 2018. Hover over a shaded district for more information.
| State legislative seats flipped in 2018, Colorado House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| District | Incumbent | 2018 winner | Direction of flip |
| Colorado House of Representatives District 25 | Timothy Leonard |
Lisa Cutter |
R to D |
| Colorado House of Representatives District 27 | Lang Sias |
Brianna Titone |
R to D |
| Colorado House of Representatives District 34 | Steve Lebsock |
Kyle Mullica |
R to D |
| Colorado House of Representatives District 37 | Cole Wist |
Tom Sullivan |
R to D |
| Colorado House of Representatives District 47 | Judy Reyher |
Bri Buentello |
R to D |
Incumbents retiring
Nineteen incumbents did not run for re-election in 2018.[7] Those incumbents were:
| Name | Party | Current Office |
|---|---|---|
| Dan Pabon |  Democratic |
House District 4 |
| Crisanta Duran | Democratic |
House District 5 |
| Paul Rosenthal | Democratic |
House District 9 |
| Mike Foote | Democratic |
House District 12 |
| Pete Lee | Democratic |
House District 18 |
| Paul Lundeen |  Republican |
House District 19 |
| Justin Everett | Republican |
House District 22 |
| Jessie Danielson | Democratic |
House District 24 |
| Timothy Leonard | Republican |
House District 25 |
| Lang Sias | Republican |
House District 27 |
| Brittany Pettersen | Democratic |
House District 28 |
| Joseph Salazar | Democratic |
House District 31 |
| Faith Winter | Democratic |
House District 35 |
| Polly Lawrence | Republican |
House District 39 |
| Dave Young | Democratic |
House District 50 |
| Yeulin Willett | Republican |
House District 54 |
| Daniel Thurlow | Republican |
House District 55 |
| Millie Hamner | Democratic |
House District 61 |
| Jon Becker | Republican |
House District 65 |
2018 battleground chamber
Ballotpedia identified the Colorado House of Representatives as one of 22 battleground chambers in 2018. These were chambers that we anticipated to be, overall, more competitive than other chambers and had the potential to see significant shifts in party control.
The chamber was selected because it met the following conditions:
- Competitive seats: In 2016, seven seats won by Democrats had a margin of victory that was less than 10 percent. Two seats won by Republicans had a margin of victory that was less than 10 percent. See the 2018 races to watch here.
- Competitive statewide race: Gov. John Hickenlooper (D), who has served as governor since 2010, was term-limited in 2018. Electoral ratings organizations expected the race to succeed Hickenlooper to be competitive between the two parties. The governor's office was previously controlled by a Republican from 1999 to 2006. Read more about the 2018 gubernatorial race here.
- Recent party control switches: The chamber flipped from Republican to Democratic control in 2012. It had switched from Democratic to Republican control two years prior in 2010.
| Party control: 2006 - 2016 | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Election Year: | 2006 | 2008 | 2010 | 2012 | 2014 | 2016 | |||||||||
| Winning Party: | D | D | R | D | D | D | |||||||||
Battleground races
| Colorado House of Representatives Battleground races |
|---|
| Democratic seats |
| District 3
|
| District 17
|
| District 29
|
| District 30
|
| District 33
|
| District 52
|
| Republican seats |
| District 25
|
| District 34
|
| District 37
|
Ballotpedia identified nine battleground races in the Colorado House of Representatives 2018 elections: six Democratic seats and three Republican seats. Based on analysis of these districts' electoral histories, these races had the potential to be more competitive than other races and could possibly have led to shifts in a chamber's partisan balance.
To determine state legislative battleground races in 2018, Ballotpedia looked for races that fit one or more of the four factors listed below:
- If the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in the most recent election prior to 2018
- If the presidential candidate opposite of the incumbent's party won the district in the 2016 elections and the incumbent’s margin of victory in the previous election was 10 percentage points or less
- If the presidential candidate opposite of the incumbent's party won the district in the 2016 elections and the incumbent did not file to run for re-election
- If the presidential candidate opposite of the incumbent's party won the district in the 2016 elections by 20 points or more
Other factors could also cause a race to be classified as a battleground. For example, Ballotpedia may have considered an election to be a battleground race if an outside group or a national or state party announced that they were targeting a specific seat in order to flip it. We may have also determined a race to be a battleground if it received an unusual amount of media attention. Two additional factors were open seats and districts impacted by redistricting.
District 3
Who won this race?
| Democratic incumbent Jeff Bridges defeated Republican Toren Mushovic. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Democratic Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016. Incumbent Jeff Bridges (D) was first elected in 2016. He received 52.5 percent of the vote and defeated his Republican challenger by 5.1 points. District 3 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 3 by 16.7 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by seven points. Bridges was supported by California billionaire Tom Steyer in the race.[8] |
District 17
Who won this race?
| Democratic incumbent Thomas Exum Sr. defeated Republican Catherine Roupe. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Democratic Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016. Incumbent Tony Exum (D) was first elected in 2016 when he defeated Republican incumbent Kit Roupe (R). He received 49.4 percent of the vote, Roupe received 41.5 percent, and Libertarian Susan Quilleash-Nelson received 9.1 percent. District 17 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 17 by 2.7 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 19.6 points. Exum was supported by California billionaire Tom Steyer in the race.[8] |
District 25
Who won this race?
| Democrat Lisa Cutter defeated Republican Steve Szutenbach. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Republican Party |
Who were the candidates running?
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016 and was won by the presidential candidate of the opposite party. Incumbent Timothy Leonard (R) was first elected in November 2016 after being appointed to the seat in January 2016. He received 51.8 percent of the vote, defeating his Democratic challenger by 3.6 points. District 25 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 25 by 1.8 points. Mitt Romney (R) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 6.6 points. |
District 29
Who won this race?
| Democratic incumbent Tracy Kraft-Tharp defeated Republican Grady Nouis. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Democratic Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016. Incumbent Tracy Kraft-Tharp (D) was first elected in 2012. She was re-elected in 2016 with 54.6 percent of the vote, 9.2 points more than her Republican challenger. District 29 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 29 by 8.6 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 13.3 points. |
District 30
Who won this race?
| Democratic incumbent Dafna Michaelson Jenet defeated Republican Susan Kochevar. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Democratic Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016. Incumbent Dafna Michaelson Jenet (D) was first elected in 2016, defeating incumbent Republican JoAnn Windholz. She received 54.2 percent of the vote and beat Windholz by 8.4 points. District 30 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 30 by 10.3 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 18.6 points. |
District 33
Who won this race?
| Democratic incumbent Matt Gray defeated Republican Eric Rutherford. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Democratic Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016. Incumbent Matt Gray (D) was first elected in 2016. He received 52.2 percent of the vote and beat his Republican challenger by 10.5 points. District 33 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 33 by 18.9 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 10.4 points. |
District 34
Who won this race?
| Democratic Kyle Mullica defeated incumbent Republican Alex Winkler. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Republican Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent was replaced by a member of other party after being expelled from the chamber. Steve Lebsock (D) was first elected in 2012. He was re-elected in 2016 with 50.0 percent of the vote, defeating Republican Alex Winkler by 6.1 points. Lebsock expelled from the chamber in March 2018 after being accused of sexual harassment. He switched to the Republican Party before being expelled, allowing Republicans to appoint Winkler to fill his seat. District 34 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 34 by 9.8 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 19.3 points. |
District 37
Who won this race?
| Democratic Tom Sullivan defeated incumbent Republican Cole Wist. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Republican Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016 and was won by the presidential candidate of the opposite party. Incumbent Cole Wist (R) was first elected in November 2016 after being appointed to the seat in January 2016. He received 54.7 percent of the vote, defeating his Democratic challenger by 9.3 points. District 37 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 37 by 6.1 points. Mitt Romney (R) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 4.8 points. |
District 52
Who won this race?
| Democratic incumbent Joann Ginal defeated Republican Donna Walter. |
What party controlled the seat heading into the election?
| The Democratic Party |
Who were the candidates running?
|
|
What made this a battleground race?
| This was a district where the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in 2016. Incumbent Joann Ginal (D) was first elected in 2012. She was re-elected in 2016 and received 54.7 percent of the vote. She beat her Republican challenger by 9.4 points. District 52 was one of 40 Colorado House districts that Democrat Hillary Clinton won in the 2016 presidential election. Clinton carried District 52 by 21.6 points. Barack Obama (D) won the district in the 2012 presidential election by 17.7 points. |
Battleground races map
Campaign activity
League of Conservation Voters involvement
The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) committed to spend $20 million on state-level races on February 8, 2018. "LCV and our affiliates will also focus resources in states like Colorado, where once again winning just one seat in the state Senate would flip the chamber to a pro-environment majority," LCV senior vice president Pete Maysmith wrote.[9]
Tom Steyer involvement
In January 2018, Western Wire reported that California billionaire Tom Steyer was supporting incumbent state Reps. Tony Exum (D), Jeff Bridges (D), and Barbara Hall McLachlan (D).[8]
Colorado political history
Party control
2018
In the 2018 elections, Democrats increased their majority in the Colorado House of Representatives from 36-29 to 41-24.
| Colorado House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 6, 2018 | After November 7, 2018 | |
| Democratic Party | 36 | 41 | |
| Republican Party | 29 | 24 | |
| Total | 65 | 65 | |
2016
In the 2016 elections, Democrats expanded their majority from 34-31 to 37-28.
Republicans maintained control of the chamber throughout the 1990s until Democrats took over in 2004. The chamber stayed in Democratic hands until 2010, when Republicans took a 1-seat majority. In the 2012 elections, Democrats regained control of the chamber.
| Colorado House of Representatives | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
| Democratic Party | 34 | 37 | |
| Republican Party | 31 | 28 | |
| Total | 65 | 65 | |
Trifectas
A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government. Following the 2016 elections, Colorado was one of 19 states under divided government. Democrats controlled the governor's office and the state House while Republicans controlled the state Senate. Colorado was under Democratic trifecta control from 2007 to 2010 and 2013 to 2014. It was under Republican trifecta control from 1999 to 2000 and 2003 to 2004.
Colorado Party Control: 1992-2025
Thirteen years of Democratic trifectas • Four years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| Senate | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
| House | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D |
Impact of term limits
The Colorado House of Representatives has been a term-limited state house since Colorado voters approved Issue 5 in 1990. The affirmative vote by Colorado's electorate in Issue 5 altered Section 3 of Article V on the Colorado Constitution to say that state representatives could serve no more than four two-year terms in office.
All 65 seats in the Colorado House of Representatives were up for election in 2018. In the 2018 elections, five representatives were ineligible to run because of term limits. The following state representatives were term limited in 2018:
Democratic: (5)
Republicans (0):
- No Republican representatives were term limited in 2018.
Of the 87 state legislative chambers that held elections in 2018, 24 of them—12 senate chambers and 12 house chambers—included incumbents who were unable to run for re-election due to term limits.[10] In the 24 chambers affected by term limits in 2018, 1,463 seats were up for election.[11] The Nevada Senate, Arkansas House, and Arkansas Senate are impacted by term limits, but no incumbents were term-limited in 2018. There are 99 chambers throughout the country.
A total of 271 state legislators—96 state senators and 175 state representatives—were ineligible to run in the 2018 elections because of term limits. This represented 4 percent of the 6,066 total seats up for election in November 2018.[12][13] Republicans had twice as many state legislators term-limited in 2018 than Democrats. A total of 86 Democrats were term-limited, while 177 Republicans were term-limited.
Wave election analysis
- See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)
The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?
Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.
Applying this definition to state legislative elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose 494 seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.
The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 10 state legislative waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.
| State legislative wave elections | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | President | Party | Election type | State legislative seats change | Elections analyzed[14] | |
| 1932 | Hoover | R | Presidential | -1,022 | 7,365 | |
| 1922 | Harding | R | First midterm | -907 | 6,907 | |
| 1966 | Johnson | D | First midterm[15] | -782 | 7,561 | |
| 1938 | Roosevelt | D | Second midterm | -769 | 7,179 | |
| 1958 | Eisenhower | R | Second midterm | -702 | 7,627 | |
| 2010 | Obama | D | First midterm | -702 | 7,306 | |
| 1974 | Ford | R | Second midterm[16] | -695 | 7,481 | |
| 1920 | Wilson | D | Presidential | -654 | 6,835 | |
| 1930 | Hoover | R | Presidential | -640 | 7,361 | |
| 1954 | Eisenhower | R | First midterm | -494 | 7,513 | |
Candidate and office information
Process to become a candidate
See statutes: Title 1, Article 4 of the Colorado Revised Statutes
There are different types of candidates in Colorado: major party candidates, minor party candidates, Qualified Political Organization (QPO) candidates, unaffiliated candidates, and write-in candidates. Ballot access methods differ according to the type of candidate.
Requirements for all candidates
There are a number of requirements that all candidates must follow. These include the following:
- A candidate for a state office must publicly announce his or her intention to run for office by means of a speech, advertisement, or other communication reported or appearing in public media or in any place accessible to the public. This includes a stated intention to explore the possibility of seeking office.[17]
- Each candidate for a state office must submit an audio recording of the correct pronunciation of his or her name.[18] Unaffiliated candidates must submit their audio recordings to the Secretary of State's office within 117 days of a general election.[19]
The qualification of any candidate may be challenged by any eligible elector within five days of the candidate qualifying for the ballot.[20]
Major party candidates
In order to run as a major party candidate, one must have been affiliated with his or her party by the first business day in January of the year of the election, unless party rules say otherwise. The candidate must be nominated in the primary election to move on to the general election as the nominee of the party. There are two methods by which a major party can place candidates on the primary election ballot: nomination by an assembly and nomination by petition.[21][22][23]
Nomination by an assembly
Major parties may hold party assemblies to nominate candidates. At these assemblies, delegates vote on possible candidates and may place up to two candidates per office on the primary ballot. Delegates to party assemblies are chosen at yearly precinct caucuses. The process by which assemblies are held is determined by the individual parties.[24][25]
A major party must hold a nominating assembly no later than 73 days before the primary election. A candidate must receive 30 percent of votes cast by assembly delegates for that office. If no candidate receives 30 percent, a second vote must be taken. If no candidate receives 30 percent at the second vote, the top two vote-getters will be nominated. Within four days of the assembly, a successful candidate must file a written acceptance of candidacy with the presiding officer of the assembly. The presiding officer of the assembly must file a certificate of designation by an assembly, along with the written acceptance of candidacy, with the Colorado Secretary of State. This certificate must state the name of the political party, the name and address of each candidate, and the offices being sought. It must also certify that the candidates have been members of the political party for the required period of time.[22][26][21]
Nomination by petition
A candidate who attempted to be nominated by assembly and failed to receive at least 10 percent of the delegates' votes may not be nominated by petition for that same party.[27]
The nominating petition must be signed by eligible electors who reside in the district the candidate seeks to represent. Candidates who collect the required number of signatures are placed on the primary election ballot. The signature requirements are as follows:[27]
| Petition signature requirements for political party candidates | |
|---|---|
| Office sought | Number of signatures required |
| Member of the United States Senate or state executive official | 1,500 from each congressional district |
| Member of the Colorado State Legislature or United States House of Representatives | 1,000, or 30 percent of the votes cast in the district in the most recent primary election for the same party and the same office, whichever is less. If there was no primary election, general election numbers should be used. |
Minor party candidates
In order to run as a minor party candidate, one must have been affiliated with his or her party by the first business day in January of the year of the election, unless party rules say otherwise. Minor parties nominate their candidates for placement on the general election ballot. If there is more than one candidate nominated for a given office, those candidates are placed on the primary ballot.[28][29]
There are two methods by which minor parties can nominate candidates to be placed on the ballot.
Nomination by assembly
The minor party must hold an assembly no later than 73 days before the primary election. A successful candidate must receive at least 30 percent of the delegates' votes for that office at the assembly.[29]
Nomination by petition
A minor party candidate may be nominated by petition. The petition must be signed by eligible electors in the same district the candidate seeks to represent. The signature requirements are listed in the table below.[28]
| Petition signature requirements for minor party candidates | |
|---|---|
| Office sought | Number of signatures required |
| Member of the United States Senate or state executive official | 1,000 |
| Member of the United States House of Representatives | 1,500, or 2.5 percent of the total votes cast for that office in that congressional district in the last general election, whichever is less |
| Member of the Colorado State Senate | 1,000, or 3.33 percent of the total votes cast for that office in that senate district in the last general election, whichever is less |
| Member of the Colorado House of Representatives | 1,000, or 5 percent of the total votes cast for that office in that house district in the last general election, whichever is less |
Qualified Political Organization (QPO) candidates
In order to run as a Qualified Political Organization (QPO) candidate, one must have been affiliated with the QPO for one year. Alternatively, if the organization has not been qualified for one year, the candidate must have been registered as unaffiliated for one year. QPO candidates must petition to be placed on the general election ballot. Each petition must include an affidavit signed under oath by the chairperson and secretary of the QPO and approved by the Colorado Secretary of State. Signature requirements are the same as those for minor party candidates, which are listed above.[28][30][31]
Unaffiliated candidates
In order to run as an unaffiliated candidate, one must be registered as unaffiliated by the first business day in January of the year of the election. An unaffiliated candidate must petition to be placed on the general election ballot. Signature requirements are the same as those for minor party candidates, which are listed above.[28]
Write-in candidates
Write-in candidates are permitted in both the primary and general elections. A write-in candidate must file an affidavit of intent with the Colorado Secretary of State no later than the close of business on the 67th day before a primary election and the 110th day before a general election. No write-in vote will be counted unless the candidate filed an affidavit of intent.[32][33][34]
Qualifications
Article 5, Section 4 of the Colorado Constitution states: No person shall be a representative or senator who shall not have attained the age of twenty-five years, who shall not be a citizen of the United States, who shall not for at least twelve months next preceding his election, have resided within the territory included in the limits of the county or district in which he shall be chosen; provided, that any person who at the time of the adoption of this constitution, was a qualified elector under the territorial laws, shall be eligible to the first general assembly.
Salaries and per diem
- See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries
| State legislative salaries, 2024[35] | |
|---|---|
| Salary | Per diem |
| $43,977/year for legislators whose terms began in 2023. $41,449/year for legislators whose terms began in 2021. | For legislators residing within 50 miles of the capitol: $45/day. For legislators living more than 50 miles from the capitol: $237/day. |
When sworn in
Colorado legislators assume office on the first day of the legislative session after their election. The legislative session must begin no later than 10:00 AM on the second Wednesday of January.[36] The state constitution requires the newly elected governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, and secretary of state to take office on the second Tuesday of January.[37] In the year after those offices are elected, the legislative session must begin before the second Tuesday of January to declare the winners of those races.[38][39]
Competitiveness
Every year, Ballotpedia uses official candidate lists from each state to examine the competitiveness of every state legislative race in the country. Nationally, there has been a steady decline in electoral competitiveness since 2010. Most notable is that the number of districts with general election competition has dropped by more than 10 percent.
Results from 2016
Click here to read the full study »
Historical context
Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.
Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.
Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.
Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.
Pivot Counties
- See also: Pivot Counties by state
Four of 64 Colorado counties—6 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.
| Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County | Trump margin of victory in 2016 | Obama margin of victory in 2012 | Obama margin of victory in 2008 | ||||
| Conejos County, Colorado | 3.56% | 9.22% | 12.93% | ||||
| Huerfano County, Colorado | 6.61% | 8.27% | 11.23% | ||||
| Las Animas County, Colorado | 15.60% | 2.65% | 7.04% | ||||
| Pueblo County, Colorado | 0.50% | 13.99% | 14.97% | ||||
In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton (D) won Colorado with 48.2 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 43.3 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Colorado voted Republican 63.3 percent of the time and Democratic 36.7 percent of the time. Colorado voted Republican in the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections, but voted Democratic in the 2008, 2012, and 2016 elections.
Presidential results by legislative district
The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Colorado. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[40][41]
| In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 37 out of 65 state House districts in Colorado with an average margin of victory of 27.3 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 40 out of 65 state House districts in Colorado with an average margin of victory of 24.8 points. Clinton won four districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections. |
| In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 28 out of 65 state House districts in Colorado with an average margin of victory of 21.2 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 25 out of 65 state House districts in Colorado with an average margin of victory of 25.8 points. Trump won one district controlled by a Democrat heading into the 2018 elections. |
| 2016 presidential results by state House district | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Obama | Romney | 2012 Margin | Clinton | Trump | 2016 Margin | Party Control |
| 1 | 63.79% | 34.04% | D+29.8 | 59.82% | 32.28% | D+27.5 | D |
| 2 | 72.48% | 24.78% | D+47.7 | 75.22% | 16.32% | D+58.9 | D |
| 3 | 52.36% | 45.33% | D+7 | 53.90% | 37.16% | D+16.7 | D |
| 4 | 79.17% | 18.39% | D+60.8 | 76.84% | 15.60% | D+61.2 | D |
| 5 | 76.41% | 21.06% | D+55.3 | 74.82% | 16.97% | D+57.9 | D |
| 6 | 66.55% | 31.98% | D+34.6 | 70.34% | 23.22% | D+47.1 | D |
| 7 | 82.54% | 16.11% | D+66.4 | 79.82% | 14.64% | D+65.2 | D |
| 8 | 84.00% | 13.75% | D+70.2 | 83.59% | 9.56% | D+74 | D |
| 9 | 63.82% | 33.80% | D+30 | 64.82% | 26.84% | D+38 | D |
| 10 | 79.29% | 17.98% | D+61.3 | 80.62% | 12.47% | D+68.2 | D |
| 11 | 58.66% | 38.84% | D+19.8 | 58.25% | 33.00% | D+25.3 | D |
| 12 | 65.33% | 32.47% | D+32.9 | 66.50% | 25.52% | D+41 | D |
| 13 | 68.88% | 28.33% | D+40.5 | 66.61% | 25.99% | D+40.6 | D |
| 14 | 29.31% | 68.47% | R+39.2 | 28.41% | 61.02% | R+32.6 | R |
| 15 | 35.17% | 62.29% | R+27.1 | 30.23% | 59.27% | R+29 | R |
| 16 | 38.44% | 58.69% | R+20.3 | 33.98% | 55.52% | R+21.5 | R |
| 17 | 58.28% | 38.66% | D+19.6 | 46.07% | 43.39% | D+2.7 | D |
| 18 | 55.69% | 41.03% | D+14.7 | 50.76% | 39.01% | D+11.8 | D |
| 19 | 23.20% | 74.75% | R+51.5 | 21.00% | 70.64% | R+49.6 | R |
| 20 | 36.90% | 61.07% | R+24.2 | 36.13% | 54.67% | R+18.5 | R |
| 21 | 44.76% | 52.44% | R+7.7 | 33.08% | 56.35% | R+23.3 | R |
| 22 | 43.22% | 54.92% | R+11.7 | 41.43% | 49.83% | R+8.4 | R |
| 23 | 56.59% | 40.48% | D+16.1 | 53.37% | 37.35% | D+16 | D |
| 24 | 56.97% | 40.27% | D+16.7 | 54.87% | 35.95% | D+18.9 | D |
| 25 | 45.68% | 52.27% | R+6.6 | 46.55% | 44.77% | D+1.8 | R |
| 26 | 56.52% | 41.35% | D+15.2 | 55.34% | 36.27% | D+19.1 | D |
| 27 | 47.59% | 50.20% | R+2.6 | 45.58% | 45.51% | D+0.1 | R |
| 28 | 56.14% | 41.40% | D+14.7 | 52.88% | 38.13% | D+14.7 | D |
| 29 | 55.15% | 41.90% | D+13.3 | 49.23% | 40.65% | D+8.6 | D |
| 30 | 58.12% | 39.53% | D+18.6 | 50.98% | 40.69% | D+10.3 | D |
| 31 | 57.57% | 39.68% | D+17.9 | 49.47% | 41.26% | D+8.2 | D |
| 32 | 68.41% | 28.79% | D+39.6 | 59.50% | 32.00% | D+27.5 | D |
| 33 | 54.04% | 43.63% | D+10.4 | 54.79% | 35.90% | D+18.9 | D |
| 34 | 58.24% | 38.92% | D+19.3 | 50.21% | 40.46% | D+9.8 | D |
| 35 | 56.93% | 40.57% | D+16.4 | 53.11% | 37.98% | D+15.1 | D |
| 36 | 58.93% | 39.04% | D+19.9 | 53.58% | 37.59% | D+16 | D |
| 37 | 46.74% | 51.56% | R+4.8 | 48.68% | 42.60% | D+6.1 | R |
| 38 | 45.32% | 52.68% | R+7.4 | 46.96% | 43.84% | D+3.1 | R |
| 39 | 33.46% | 64.72% | R+31.3 | 31.36% | 61.02% | R+29.7 | R |
| 40 | 57.39% | 40.16% | D+17.2 | 53.06% | 37.39% | D+15.7 | D |
| 41 | 62.83% | 34.95% | D+27.9 | 60.91% | 31.42% | D+29.5 | D |
| 42 | 72.27% | 25.31% | D+47 | 66.99% | 25.31% | D+41.7 | D |
| 43 | 40.49% | 58.15% | R+17.7 | 42.44% | 48.85% | R+6.4 | R |
| 44 | 37.59% | 60.64% | R+23 | 37.16% | 53.68% | R+16.5 | R |
| 45 | 32.91% | 65.51% | R+32.6 | 32.80% | 58.30% | R+25.5 | R |
| 46 | 55.76% | 42.01% | D+13.8 | 45.78% | 46.05% | R+0.3 | D |
| 47 | 47.31% | 50.40% | R+3.1 | 37.98% | 54.19% | R+16.2 | R |
| 48 | 37.53% | 60.27% | R+22.7 | 30.35% | 61.19% | R+30.8 | R |
| 49 | 41.56% | 56.12% | R+14.6 | 36.54% | 54.81% | R+18.3 | R |
| 50 | 55.50% | 41.23% | D+14.3 | 45.81% | 43.71% | D+2.1 | D |
| 51 | 43.13% | 54.07% | R+10.9 | 36.83% | 53.48% | R+16.7 | R |
| 52 | 57.53% | 39.81% | D+17.7 | 55.70% | 34.08% | D+21.6 | D |
| 53 | 61.38% | 35.23% | D+26.1 | 59.03% | 29.59% | D+29.4 | D |
| 54 | 28.39% | 69.43% | R+41 | 22.69% | 70.10% | R+47.4 | R |
| 55 | 36.10% | 61.61% | R+25.5 | 32.32% | 59.26% | R+26.9 | R |
| 56 | 40.95% | 56.94% | R+16 | 36.37% | 55.99% | R+19.6 | R |
| 57 | 38.90% | 58.78% | R+19.9 | 34.52% | 58.25% | R+23.7 | R |
| 58 | 36.91% | 60.52% | R+23.6 | 31.94% | 61.10% | R+29.2 | R |
| 59 | 50.62% | 46.33% | D+4.3 | 47.02% | 43.47% | D+3.5 | D |
| 60 | 39.26% | 57.98% | R+18.7 | 31.71% | 60.43% | R+28.7 | R |
| 61 | 55.13% | 42.35% | D+12.8 | 52.90% | 39.28% | D+13.6 | D |
| 62 | 58.86% | 38.59% | D+20.3 | 47.77% | 43.64% | D+4.1 | D |
| 63 | 40.61% | 56.65% | R+16 | 33.06% | 58.29% | R+25.2 | R |
| 64 | 31.01% | 66.64% | R+35.6 | 22.78% | 70.74% | R+48 | R |
| 65 | 29.29% | 68.33% | R+39 | 20.30% | 74.27% | R+54 | R |
| Total | 51.49% | 46.13% | D+5.4 | 48.16% | 43.25% | D+4.9 | - |
| Source: Daily Kos | |||||||
See also
- Colorado House of Representatives
- Colorado State Legislature
- State legislative elections, 2018
- Colorado state legislative Democratic primaries, 2018
- Colorado state legislative Republican primaries, 2018
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Same-day registration was available for those voting in person at Voter Service and Polling Centers,
- ↑ Same-day registration was available for those voting in person at Voter Service and Polling Centers,
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2018 General Election Candidate List," accessed October 24, 2018
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2018 Primary Election Candidate List," accessed May 7, 2018
- ↑ Votes counted in the primary for Rosenfeld were counted for replacement candidate Nicki Mills.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Excludes unopposed elections
- ↑ Ballotpedia defines an incumbent as retiring if the incumbent did not file for office or filed for office but withdrew, was disqualified, or otherwise left a race in a manner other than losing the primary, primary runoff, or convention. If an incumbent runs as a write-in candidate, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring. If an incumbent runs in the same chamber for a different seat, Ballotpedia does not consider them to be retiring.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Western Wire, "California Billionaire Tom Steyer Targets State Races In Colorado In 2018," January 18, 2018
- ↑ League of Conservation Voters, "LCV’s 2018 Preview Part One: States take renewed focus," February 8, 2018
- ↑ The Nevada Senate, Arkansas House, and Arkansas Senate were up for election in 2018 and have term limits, but no incumbents were term-limited in 2018.
- ↑ The Nevada Senate, Arkansas House, and Arkansas Senate are impacted by term limits, but no incumbents were term-limited in 2018. In the three chambers, a total of 129 seats were up for election in 2018. No legislators were unable to run in 2018 in those three chamber because of term limits.
- ↑ Ballotpedia confirmed through phone calls that at least seven California legislators were term-limited in 2018. The number of California legislators term-limited and the overall number of term-limited state legislators had a chance to change if Ballotpedia could confirm that more members were term-limited in 2018.
- ↑ Some of the 271 term-limited state legislators in 2018 may resign before their term ends. These legislators were still counted in the total number of term-limited legislators in 2018.
- ↑ The number of state legislative seats available for analysis varied, with as many as 7,795 and as few as 6,835.
- ↑ Lyndon Johnson's (D) first term began in November 1963 after the death of President John F. Kennedy (D), who was first elected in 1960. Before Johnson had his first midterm in 1966, he was re-elected president in 1964.
- ↑ Gerald Ford's (R) first term began in August 1974 following the resignation of President Richard Nixon (R), who was first elected in 1968 and was re-elected in 1972. Because Ford only served for two full months before facing the electorate, this election is classified as Nixon's second midterm.
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State Website, "State Candidates," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Audio Recording Instructions," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Unaffiliated Candidate Petition," March 5, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 501," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Colorado Secretary of State, "Major Party Assembly Designation," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 601," accessed February 5, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Major Political Parties FAQs," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedcostatute602 - ↑ Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 602," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 604," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 801," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 28.3 Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 802," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 1304," accessed March 5, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Election Rules, "Rule 3: Rules Concerning Qualified Political Organizations," accessed March 6, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Minor Parties and Qualified Political Organizations FAQs," accessed March 6, 2025
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedcocall - ↑ Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 1102," accessed March 6, 2025
- ↑ Colorado Revised Statutes, "Title 1, Article 4, Section 1101," accessed March 6, 2025
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2024 Legislator Compensation," August 21, 2024
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Colorado Constitution - Article 5, Section 7," accessed February 9, 2021
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Colorado Constitution - Article 4, Section 1," accessed February 9, 2021
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Colorado Constitution - Article 4, Section 3," accessed February 9, 2021
- ↑ Colorado LegiSource, "Surprise! The 2019 Legislative Session Convening a Week Earlier," September 20, 2018
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
