Colorado Republican Party | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chairperson | Brita Horn |
| Senate Leader | Cleave Simpson |
| House Leader | Vacant |
| Headquarters | Greenwood Village, Colorado |
| Membership(2025) |  940,271[1] |
| Ideology | Conservatism Trumpism Christian right Anti-LGBTIQA+[2][3] Factions: LGBTIQA+-affirming[4] |
| Political position | Right-wing[5][6] |
| National affiliation | Republican Party |
| Colors | Red |
| U.S. Senate | 0 / 2 |
| U.S. House | 4 / 8 |
| Statewide offices | 0 / 5 |
| Colorado Senate | 12 / 35 |
| Colorado House of Representatives | 22 / 65 |
| Colorado State Board of Education | 4 / 9 |
| University of Colorado Board of Regents | 4 / 9 |
| Election symbol | |
.svg) | |
| Website | |
| www | |
TheColorado Republican Party is the state affiliate of theRepublican Party in the U.S. state ofColorado. The party's headquarters is located inGreenwood Village, Colorado.
The Republican Party was dominant in the state as recently as the mid-2000s, however it has declined over the subsequent decades. After the2020 elections, Republicans held the smallest amount of political power in the state government sinceWorld War II. This decline has been attributed to various factors, including the party moving too far right for the state, changing demographics, mismanaged campaign money, internal party divisions, a better organizedDemocratic Party, and the unpopularity ofDonald Trump in the state.[7]
The party fared even poorer in the2022 elections, in which Democrats swept every statewide office by a double-digit margin, expanded their majority in the state'sU.S. House delegation, and further expanded their supermajorities in both chambers of thelegislature.[8] Since 2023, the party has faced revenue loss and party infighting, with the party veering further towards the far-right and overall further decline of influence in the state.[9][10]
Ted Cruz won all of Colorado's delegates during the2016 presidential primaries. Colorado's delegation to the2016 Republican National Convention stagged a walkout as part of theNever Trump movement. However,Ken Buck and other members of the delegation later became Trump supporters after initially opposing him.[11][12]
According toFrank McNulty, fringe candidates began winning in safe Republican seats in the 2010s.[13] Republicans in Colorado shifted rightward following the election of Trump. From 2018 to 2020, Republicans lost all of their statewide offices, except for the at-large Board of Regents seat held byHeidi Ganahl.[14][5] Between 1984 and 2016, the Republicans had more registered voters than the Democrats.[15] In 2020, the Republicans lost control of theRegents of the University of Colorado for the first time in 41 years.[13]
Patrick Neville was elected minority leader in the state house in 2016, which gave him control of the caucus' bank account. Neville renamed the account to Values First Colorado and registered it under his brother Joe Neville. The previous vendor was fired and replaced with Rearden Strategic, which was run by Joe. $207,800 was given to Rearden Strategic from 2017 to 2020, and two other committees managed by Joe, Citizens for Secure Borders IEC and Take Back Colorado, were given $274,200 and $545,000 respectively. RepresentativeLarry Liston stated that it was embarrassing for those who contributed funds and RepresentativeLois Landgraf was critical of the lack of oversight and not supporting "appropriate candidates".[13]
Since Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in the2020 presidential election, elements of the Colorado GOP and its voter base have espoused support for Trump's false claims of election fraud.[16][17][5] While top Colorado Republicans have defended Colorado's local elections, they have cast doubt on the validity of the election results in other states or stayed silent on Trump's allegations of fraud.[18] On December 7, 2020, a group of Republicans requested to the Speaker of the HouseKC Becker that a committee be formed on "election integrity" to conduct an audit of theDominion Voting Systems used in Colorado in spite of no evidence of issues. The request was rejected, with Becker criticizing it as "a dangerous stunt" and a promotion of "debunked conspiracy theories."[19][20]
Also in December, Colorado congressional Republicans supported alawsuit aimed tooverturn the election results.[21] On January 6, 2021, congressional Republicans from Colorado objected tocertification of the results, withLauren Boebert andDoug Lamborn objecting to certification of the results.[22][23]
The party performed poorly in the2022 elections; Democrats won every statewide office by double digits, expanded their numbers in the state'sU.S. House delegation, and further expanded their majorities in both chambers of the legislature.[8] In the aftermath of the heavily lopsided results, Republican state representativeColin Larson lamented that "Colorado Republicans need to take this and learn the lesson that the party is dead. This was an extinction-level event."[8]
In 2023, former state representativeDave Williams was elected to chair the state's Republican Party; he has been noted for promoting false claims of election fraud.[6][24] Since 2023, the party has faced a significant loss of funding, an increase in infighting and party division, controversial leadership, the party veering further to the right, and a further decrease of influence within the state.[25][9][10][26]
In March 2025, formerRoutt County treasurer Brita Horn was elected chairperson of the party.[27][28]
After the2022 Colorado elections, the Colorado Republican Party controls none of the statewide offices and holds minorities in the Colorado Senate and House of Representatives. Republicans currently hold half of the state's U.S. House delegation, having erased the Democrats' majority after the2024 elections whenGabe Evans defeated incumbent DemocratYadira Caraveo.
Both of Colorado's U.S. Senate seats have been held by Democrats since 2021.Cory Gardner was the last Republican to represent Colorado in the U.S. Senate. First elected in2014, Gardner lost his bid for a second term in2020 toJohn Hickenlooper who has held the seat since.
| District | Member | Photo |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Jeff Hurd |  |
| 4th | Lauren Boebert |  |
| 5th | Jeff Crank |  |
| 8th | Gabe Evans |  |
Republicans have not won a statewide office since2016, whenHeidi Ganahl narrowly won the at-large seat on theUniversity of Colorado Board of Regents.[30]
| Election | Gubernatorial candidate/ticket | Votes | Vote % | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1876 | John Long Routt | 14,154 | 51.53% | Won Y |
| 1878 | Frederick Walker Pitkin | 14,308 | 49.98% | WonY |
| 1880 | Frederick Walker Pitkin | 28,465 | 53.28% | WonY |
| 1882 | E. L. Campbell | 28,820 | 46.91% | Lost N |
| 1884 | Benjamin Harrison Eaton | 33,845 | 50.74% | WonY |
| 1886 | William H. Meyer | 26,816 | 45.55% | LostN |
| 1888 | Job Adams Cooper | 49,490 | 53.84% | WonY |
| 1890 | John Long Routt | 41,827 | 50.11% | WonY |
| 1892 | Joseph Helm | 38,806 | 41.79% | LostN |
| 1894 | Albert McIntire | 93,502 | 51.95% | WonY |
| 1896 | G. H. Allen | 23,945 | 12.66% | LostN |
| 1898 | Henry R. Wolcott | 51,051 | 34.17% | LostN |
| 1900 | Frank C. Goudy | 96,027 | 43.53% | LostN |
| 1902 | James Hamilton Peabody | 87,684 | 46.94% | WonY |
| 1904 | James Hamilton Peabody | 113,754 | 46.80% | LostN |
| 1906 | Henry Augustus Buchtel | 92,602 | 45.59% | WonY |
| 1908 | Jesse Fuller McDonald | 118,953 | 45.16% | LostN |
| 1910 | John B. Stephen | 97,691 | 43.48% | LostN |
| 1912 | Clifford C. Parks | 63,061 | 23.73% | LostN |
| 1914 | George Alfred Carlson | 129,096 | 48.67% | WonY |
| 1916 | George Alfred Carlson | 117,723 | 41.28% | LostN |
| 1918 | Oliver Henry Shoup | 112,693 | 51.15% | WonY |
| 1920 | Oliver Henry Shoup | 174,488 | 59.55% | WonY |
| 1922 | Benjamin Griffith | 134,353 | 48.29% | LostN |
| 1924 | Clarence Morley | 178,078 | 51.92% | WonY |
| 1926 | Oliver Henry Shoup | 116,756 | 38.11% | LostN |
| 1928 | William L. Boatright | 114,067 | 31.85% | LostN |
| 1930 | Robert F. Rockwell | 124,164 | 38.06% | LostN |
| 1932 | James D. Parriott | 183,258 | 40.78% | LostN |
| 1934 | Nathan C. Warren | 162,791 | 39.91% | LostN |
| 1936 | Charles M. Armstrong | 210,614 | 43.65% | LostN |
| 1938 | Ralph Lawrence Carr | 296,671 | 59.50% | WonY |
| 1940 | Ralph Lawrence Carr | 296,671 | 54.37% | WonY |
| 1942 | John Charles Vivian | 193,501 | 56.23% | WonY |
| 1944 | John Charles Vivian | 259,862 | 52.40% | WonY |
| 1946 | Leon Lavington | 160,483 | 47.89% | LostN |
| 1948 | David A. Hamil | 168,928 | 33.67% | LostN |
| 1950 | Daniel I. J. Thornton | 236,472 | 52.43% | WonY |
| 1952 | Daniel I. J. Thornton | 349,924 | 57.08% | WonY |
| 1954 | Donald G. Brotzman | 227,335 | 46.44% | LostN |
| 1956 | Donald G. Brotzman | 313,950 | 48.66% | LostN |
| 1958 | Palmer Burch | 228,643 | 41.59% | LostN |
| 1962 | John Arthur Love | 349,342 | 56.67% | WonY |
| 1966 | John Arthur Love | 356,730 | 54.05% | WonY |
| 1970 | John Arthur Love/John D. Vanderhoof | 350,690 | 52.46% | WonY |
| 1974 | John D. Vanderhoof/Ted L. Strickland | 378,907 | 45.71% | LostN |
| 1978 | Ted L. Strickland/Hank Brown | 317,292 | 38.53% | LostN |
| 1982 | John Fuhr/Robert E. Denier | 302,740 | 31.67% | LostN |
| 1986 | Ted L. Strickland/Kathy Arnold | 434,420 | 41.03% | LostN |
| 1990 | John Andrews/Lillian Bickel | 358,403 | 35.43% | LostN |
| 1994 | Bruce D. Benson/Bob Schaeffer | 432,042 | 38.70% | LostN |
| 1998 | Bill Owens/Joe Rogers | 648,202 | 49.06% | WonY |
| 2002 | Bill Owens/Jane E. Norton | 884,583 | 62.62% | WonY |
| 2006 | Bob Beauprez/Janet Rowland | 625,886 | 40.2% | LostN |
| 2010 | Dan Maes/Tambor Williams | 199,792 | 11.1% | LostN |
| 2014 | Bob Beauprez/Jill Repella | 938,195 | 45.95% | LostN |
| 2018 | Walker Stapleton/Lang Sias | 1,080,801 | 42.80% | LostN |
| 2022 | Heidi Ganahl/Danny Moore | 983,040 | 39.2% | LostN |
...prominent Colorado Republicans, who tend to defend Colorado's election system even as they cast doubt on systems in other states, or remain mum on Trump's allegations of widespread fraud.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Colorado political parties | ||
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