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Tag: 2026 Elections

Cunningham: GOP moderates are learning the wrong lessons from 2024—and risk losing everything in 2026
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Approved, Commentary, National, Red State

Cunningham: GOP moderates are learning the wrong lessons from 2024—and risk losing everything in 2026

By Joe Cunningham  | Redstate, Commentary This column really has two audiences. The first is moderate Republicans who are getting in the way of major fiscal reforms necessary to correct decades of financial irresponsibility. The second is Republican leadership who, in all honesty, are in a tough position trying to herd a bunch of unruly cats with personality disorders ranging from extreme anxiety to a desire to fight everything that moves.  Throughout this entire chaotic budget fight over the One Big Beautiful Bill, a dangerous delusion has begun creeping back into the Republican Party, especially among the moderate class and some in GOP leadership. It’s this belief they are getting once again that they won’t be able to win and stay in power if they don’t moderate on s...
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Statewide and congressional contests heat up early as candidates line up for 2026
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Approved, Colorado Politics, State

Statewide and congressional contests heat up early as candidates line up for 2026

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Colorado's political world is in as close to a lull as it's likely to get this cycle — six months past the 2024 general election, days after the end of this year's regular legislative session, and with just over a year to go until voters begin casting primary ballots. Major candidates for the state's most prominent and competitive 2026 contests have already emerged, but many are about to get more company. Like at the beginning of a fundraising quarter, the immediate aftermath of the General Assembly's 120 day session is prime calendar real estate to launch campaigns for higher offices, for a couple of reasons: State lawmakers finally again have some control over their schedule and can turn their attention to campaigning, while other hopefuls ca...
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Polls show Republican momentum, Democrat doubts as Colorado’s 2026 battle lines form
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Polls show Republican momentum, Democrat doubts as Colorado’s 2026 battle lines form

By RMV Staff | Rocky Mountain Voice Unaffiliated voters now make up nearly half of Colorado’s electorate – and both parties are fighting to find a winning message. With the 2026 midterms on the horizon, several new polls offer an early glimpse into Colorado's shifting political terrain. A recent survey of 987 likely Colorado Republican primary voters, conducted by Pulse Opinion Research for the Road to Red Initiative from March 14–19, offers a snapshot of voter sentiment heading into the 2026 midterms. Among these voters, optimism runs high. Fifty-nine percent say the country is headed in the right direction – and 69% give Trump strong marks for his time in office. The Republican advantage extends beyond Trump himself. If voters were casting ballots in congressional races to...
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Can the America-First movement win in Colorado? Heidi Ganahl and Rasmussen pollster break down Colorado’s GOP identity crisis
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Can the America-First movement win in Colorado? Heidi Ganahl and Rasmussen pollster break down Colorado’s GOP identity crisis

By Rocky Mountain Voice Staff With Colorado’s 2026 elections on the horizon, Republicans are once again asking the question: What kind of candidate can actually win statewide? On the latest episode of Unleashed, Rocky Mountain Voice founder Heidi Ganahl sat down with Mark Mitchell, head pollster for Rasmussen Reports, to dig into exclusive polling data—and the identity crisis facing Colorado’s GOP. [Click here to listen or watch the full episode on YouTube or Rumble.] “This is one of the biggest quandaries,” Mitchell said. “How do you unpack this very particular issue in Colorado?” A Party Divided The polling, commissioned by Ganahl’s Road to Red project, looked at likely Republican primary voters in Colorado. But in a state where unaffiliated voters outnumber both parties, ...
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Yadira Caraveo launches bid to reclaim Colorado’s 8th District after razor-thin loss to Gabe Evans
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Yadira Caraveo launches bid to reclaim Colorado’s 8th District after razor-thin loss to Gabe Evans

By Rocky Mountain Voice Staff Democrat Yadira Caraveo has officially launched her campaign to reclaim Colorado’s 8th Congressional District—just five months after losing the seat to freshman Republican Gabe Evans by fewer than 2,500 votes. Caraveo’s announcement sets the stage for a rematch in what has quickly become one of the most closely watched and expensive congressional battlegrounds in the country. One of the Most Competitive Districts in the Nation The 8th District, created after the 2020 Census, has emerged as a political bellwether with no clear partisan tilt. It spans Denver’s northern suburbs and rural areas along U.S. 85 into Greeley and has the highest percentage of Latino voters of any district in the state. Caraveo first won the seat in 2022 by just 1,600 vot...
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Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold joins Democratic primary for attorney general
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State, Top Stories

Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold joins Democratic primary for attorney general

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold announced Monday that she is seeking the Democratic nomination for attorney general in next year's election, promising to "stand up to Donald Trump to protect our rights and freedoms." "Attorneys general are on the front lines of defending our rights and our freedoms, which are under massive attack from Elon Musk and Donald Trump," Griswold told Colorado Politics prior to her campaign launch. "And I have a proven track record of standing up to MAGA extremists and Donald Trump over the last six and a half years of serving as secretary of state, and I hope to continue that as attorney general." Added Griswold: "I think we're at a tremendous risk nationally when there's a president who does not believe in ...
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A shepherd in the trenches: Rep. Scott Bottoms answers the call to fight for Colorado
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Approved, Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

A shepherd in the trenches: Rep. Scott Bottoms answers the call to fight for Colorado

By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice El Paso County Republican Rep. Scott Bottoms walked the quiet State Capitol halls with his wife, prayers filling the empty space. They spent hours there—no fanfare, just a pastor seeking God’s will on a new path after years of preaching in Colorado Springs.  Several lawmakers asked him to run for office. “I’m a pastor,” he told them. One replied, “Pray about it.” That stuck. “I almost said no,” Bottoms said. “I was scared God might say yes.”  “I didn’t choose this,” Bottoms said. “I felt God say, ‘This is your battlefield.’” He said what no one else would Bottoms caught the attention of millions across the country with a speech that went viral on X last fall. “Our state is running rampant with pedophilia,”...
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Early cash surge in Colorado’s 8th congressional district as Democrats target Rep. Gabe Evans’ seat
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Approved, coloradopolitics.com, State

Early cash surge in Colorado’s 8th congressional district as Democrats target Rep. Gabe Evans’ seat

By Ernest Luning | Colorado Politics Democratic congressional candidate Manny Rutinel has raised more than $1 million since launching his bid in late January to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans in Colorado's swingy 8th Congressional District, his campaign said. In just six weeks, Rutinel entered seven-figure territory with the help of more than 23,000 individual contributors, for an average contribution of less than $35, according to the Commerce City state lawmaker's campaign. More than 99% of contributions were under $100, a campaign spokeswoman added. Evans, an Army veteran and retired police officer, is serving his first term representing the Northern Front Range district after defeating Democratic incumbent Yadira Caraveo by fewer than 2,500 votes in last year's...
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Byron Donalds announces 2026 Florida gubernatorial run
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Approved, National, Washington Examiner

Byron Donalds announces 2026 Florida gubernatorial run

By Ross O'Keefe | Washington Examiner Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) is running to be Florida’s next governor. The Florida congressman announced his candidacy in the state’s 2026 gubernatorial race after President Donald Trump endorsed him for the position. “I joined the tea party movement, was in the conservative movement, I was able to serve four years in the state legislature, four years in Congress, and now is the time to take the mantle and lead our state into the future,” he said on Fox News’s Hannity on Tuesday night. “We have a great governor: Ron DeSantis has done a tremendous job for our state. Now, the job is to keep the best state in the country as the best state in the country,” he added. READ THE FULL STORY AT THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER...
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Senate 2026: Who’s in, who’s out, and who’s on the fence for reelection
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Approved, National, Washington Examiner

Senate 2026: Who’s in, who’s out, and who’s on the fence for reelection

By Samantha-Jo Roth | Washington Examiner The race for control of the Senate in 2026 has kicked off with incumbents up for reelection making decisions about their political futures, shaking up the map for next year’s midterm elections. Political handicappers like the Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball have predicted that Democrats have few opportunities to claw back the majority. But, Sen. Tina Smith’s (D-MN) retirement announcement this week, the second Democratic incumbent to bow out of the 2026 election after Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), is making their efforts even more challenging. In order to take back control of the chamber next year, Democrats would need a net pickup of four seats, but only a handful...
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