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Colorado GOP Debates Strategy to Win Governor’s Seat After Two Decades of Losses
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado GOP Debates Strategy to Win Governor’s Seat After Two Decades of Losses

By: Thelma Grimes | Colorado Politics Colorado has not elected a Republican governor since 2002. On Thursday night, four candidates offered competing visions for how the party can reverse its 20-plus years of failing to secure the seat. The discussion hosted by the Women of Weld County touched on electability, affordability, housing, and how a Republican governor would work with the Trump administration. While 20 candidates are vying to win their party’s primary contest, only four attended the debate: Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, Joshua Griffin, Joe Oltmann and Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell. Colorado’s last Republican governor was Bill Owens. The state is now considered by many to be solidly blue. Gov. Jared Polis, the current governor, won reelection i...
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Title Board Clears Path For Ballot Measures To End Colorado’s Flat Income Tax
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Title Board Clears Path For Ballot Measures To End Colorado’s Flat Income Tax

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Proponents hoping to change Colorado’s income tax structure from a flat rate to graduated tiers — thereby raising taxes for some brackets — walked away from a Wednesday meeting with eight ballot measures approved by the title board. The coalition backing the graduated income tax change now must pick which one to move onto the petition process. It’s a big change from the group’s last visit in October, when the three-member Initiative Title Setting Review Board rejected two proposed measures for violating a rule that ballot measures may only contain a single subject. In December, the title board turned down a third proposal for the same reason. The title board is made up of representatives from the Attorney Genera...
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Federal judge recommends dismissing school districts’ lawsuit over transgender sports rules
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Federal judge recommends dismissing school districts’ lawsuit over transgender sports rules

By Eric Young | Colorado Politics A judge has recommended dismissing a federal lawsuit filed by multiple school districts against the Colorado Attorney General’s and Civil Rights Offices over their policies dictating students’ participation in athletics and activities based on their biological sex rather than gender identity. Last spring, District 49, later joined by Colorado Springs D-11, Academy D-20, Education ReEnvisioned BOCES and El Paso County charter schools, filed the lawsuit against the two state bodies plus the Colorado High School Athletics Association (CHSAA) over what they allege to be discrimination against female student athletes by allowing transgender students to participate in activities that align with their gender identity. The small, rural school ...
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Court Deals Setback to Rep Jason Crow Over ICE Oversight Rules Challenge
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Colorado Politics, Approved, National

Court Deals Setback to Rep Jason Crow Over ICE Oversight Rules Challenge

By: Michael Kunzelman | Colorado Politics WASHINGTON • A federal judge refused Monday to temporarily block the Trump administration from enforcing a new policy requiring a week’s notice before members of Congress can visit immigration detention facilities. U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, who is based in Washington, D.C., concluded that the Department of Homeland Security didn’t violate an earlier court order when it reimposed a seven-day notice requirement for congressional oversight visits to Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities. Cobb stressed that she isn’t ruling on whether the new policy passes legal muster. Rather, she said, plaintiffs’ attorneys representing several Democratic members of Congress used the wrong “procedural vehicle” to chall...
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Feds Unveil Colorado River Options as States Miss Agreement Deadline
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Feds Unveil Colorado River Options as States Miss Agreement Deadline

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Two months after the seven states of the Colorado River basin failed to reach consensus on managing the waterway, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation issued a set of proposed alternatives. The alternatives are familiar concepts, including “no action” — an unlikely scenario — and certain levels of coordination, including voluntary measures, among the states. One option is driven by the historical, natural flow at one of the reservoirs. Current operating guidelines for the river that supplies water to seven states, 40 million people, 30 tribes and 5.5 million acres of agricultural land will expire at the end of 2026.  On Jan. 9, the Bureau issued a draft Environmental Impact Statement that evaluates five operational alterna...
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Polis Takes a Victory-Victim Lap in Final State of the State Address
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Polis Takes a Victory-Victim Lap in Final State of the State Address

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday took an 82-minute victory lap in his eighth — and final — State of the State address. He touted his work in the areas of early childhood development, education, health care, housing and public safety, pointing to major initiatives he has launched. He sought to paint a picture of a strong state under attack by the Trump administration. Indeed, he blamed much of Colorado’s woes on federal actions, notably funding cuts and a policy agenda from the White House that he described as “not the Colorado way.” To Polis, policies coming out of Washington, D.C. — uncertainty over tariffs, an immigration crackdown, letting a key health care subsidy expire — are standing in the way of Colorado’s progress. ...
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Colorado Democrats Move Quickly Toward Greater State Oversight In First 20 Bills
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Democrats Move Quickly Toward Greater State Oversight In First 20 Bills

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Lawmakers from Colorado’s House of Representatives have introduced their first 20 bills of the session, which are often their top priorities for the year. In 2026, priorities include labor unions, increased affordable housing, and consumer protections. The very first bill read across the House desk, House Bill 1001, was introduced by sponsors last month during a press conference with Gov. Jared Polis. The bill, which sponsors are calling the HOME ACT, would allow schools, nonprofit organizations, and transit centers to use underutilized land to build affordable housing. “Colorado lacks over 100,000 homes, and we need creative solutions to address this housing shortage,” said sponsor Speaker Pro Tempore Andy Boesenecker...
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DEA Chief Says Cartels View Colorado as Safe Haven for Drug Trafficking
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

DEA Chief Says Cartels View Colorado as Safe Haven for Drug Trafficking

By The Denver Gazette | Colorado politics Colorado’s “sanctuary” laws, notably its prohibition against cooperating with federal authorities, are having a “chilling effect” on law enforcement’s ability to go after drug cartels operating in the state, an official of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency said. That situation sits atop Colorado’s “pervasive drug culture stemming back to the marijuana initiation,” said David Olesky, the special agent in charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Rocky Mountain Field Division. That “drug culture” is sustained by how Colorado and its political subdivisions treat criminality, he said, adding he is not making a “political” statement — just describing the challenges his agents face on the ground. Of particular worry...
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Old Divides Return as Colorado Lawmakers Brace for Contentious 2026 Session
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Old Divides Return as Colorado Lawmakers Brace for Contentious 2026 Session

By Marissa Ventrelli | Colorado Politics Grab your popcorn, it’s going to be an interesting 2026 legislative session in Colorado. There’s not much you can count on these days, but if you’ve been around the Capitol long enough, you’ve probably seen your fair share of disagreements, both friendly and unfriendly — and you can be sure you’ll see even more when the session is gavelled in on Jan. 14. Here are a few of the biggest battles already brewing amongst lawmakers ahead of the session. The urban-rural divide Nearly 80% of Colorado’s land is considered rural or frontier, but about 86% of the state’s population resides in urban areas, according to Census data. The rural minority has long felt excluded from major policy decisions, as many rural legislators ...
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Colorado Lawmakers Brace for Wave of Primary Challenges Ahead of 2026 Elections
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Lawmakers Brace for Wave of Primary Challenges Ahead of 2026 Elections

By: Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics As the 2026 election cycle begins, an unusually large number of Colorado lawmakers — many appointed through the vacancy process — are facing primary challenges that reflect deepening divisions within both major parties. But it isn’t only open seats that candidates are looking at: at least 14 current lawmakers, almost all in the House, are facing primary challenges from within their own parties. Six are lawmakers who began their legislative service through the vacancy process, including four who gained their seats in the past year.  On Monday, former Rep. Amy Parks, R-Loveland, announced she would challenge Rep. Ron Weinberg in House District 51. Parks was the partner of the late House Minority Leader Hugh McKean.&nb...
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