Colorado Republican Party

Last updated
Colorado Republican Party
Chairperson Brita Horn
Senate Leader Cleave Simpson
House Leader Rose Pugliese
Headquarters Greenwood Village, Colorado
Membership (2025)Decrease2.svg 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
Republican Party Disc (alternate).svg
Website
www.cologop.org

The Colorado Republican Party is the state affiliate of the Republican Party in the U.S. state of Colorado. The party's headquarters is located in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

Contents

The Republican Party was dominant in the state as recently as the mid-2000s, however it has declined over the subsequent decades. After the 2020 elections, Republicans held the smallest amount of political power in the state government since World 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 organized Democratic Party, and the unpopularity of Donald Trump in the state. [7]

The party fared even poorer in the 2022 elections, in which Democrats swept every statewide office by a double-digit margin, expanded their majority in the state's U.S. House delegation, and further expanded their supermajorities in both chambers of the legislature. [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]

History

2010s

Ted Cruz won all of Colorado's delegates during the 2016 presidential primaries. Colorado's delegation to the 2016 Republican National Convention stagged a walkout as part of the Never Trump movement. However, Ken Buck and other members of the delegation later became Trump supporters after initially opposing him. [11] [12]

According to Frank 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 by Heidi Ganahl. [14] [5] Between 1984 and 2016, the Republicans had more registered voters than the Democrats. [15] In 2020, the Republicans lost control of the Regents 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. Representative Larry Liston stated that it was embarrassing for those who contributed funds and Representative Lois Landgraf was critical of the lack of oversight and not supporting "appropriate candidates". [13]

2020s

Since Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in the 2020 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 House KC Becker that a committee be formed on "election integrity" to conduct an audit of the Dominion 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 a lawsuit aimed to overturn the election results. [21] On January 6, 2021, congressional Republicans from Colorado objected to certification of the results, with Lauren Boebert and Doug Lamborn objecting to certification of the results. [22] [23]

The party performed poorly in the 2022 elections; Democrats won every statewide office by double digits, expanded their numbers in the state's U.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 representative Colin 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 representative Dave 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, former Routt County treasurer Brita Horn was elected chairperson of the party. [27] [28]

Current elected officials

After the 2022 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 the 2024 elections when Gabe Evans defeated incumbent Democrat Yadira Caraveo.

Members of Congress

U.S. Senate

  • None

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 in 2014, Gardner lost his bid for a second term in 2020 to John Hickenlooper who has held the seat since.

U.S. House of Representatives

DistrictMemberPhoto
3rd Jeff Hurd
RepJeffHurd.jpg
4th Lauren Boebert
Lauren Boebert 117th U.S Congress.jpg
5th Jeff Crank
Jeff Crank 119th Congress.jpg
8th Gabe Evans
Rep. Gabe Evans official photo, 119th Congress.jpg

Statewide offices

Republicans have not won a statewide office since 2016, when Heidi Ganahl narrowly won the at-large seat on the University of Colorado Board of Regents. [30]

Legislative leadership

Election results

Presidential

Colorado Republican Party presidential election results
ElectionPresidential ticketVotesVote %Electoral votesResult
1876 Rutherford B. Hayes/William A. Wheeler No popular vote
3 / 3
Won
1880 James A. Garfield/Chester A. Arthur 27,45051.26%
3 / 3
Won
1884 James G. Blaine/John A. Logan 39,51454.25%
3 / 3
Lost
1888 Benjamin Harrison/Levi P. Morton 50,77255.22%
3 / 3
Won
1892 Benjamin Harrison/Whitelaw Reid 38,62041.13%
0 / 4
Lost
1896 William McKinley/Garret Hobart 26,27113.86%
0 / 4
Won
1900 William McKinley/Theodore Roosevelt 93,07242.04%
0 / 4
Won
1904 Theodore Roosevelt/Charles W. Fairbanks 134,66155.26%
5 / 5
Won
1908 William Howard Taft/James S. Sherman 123,69346.88%
0 / 5
Won
1912 William Howard Taft/Nicholas M. Butler 58,38621.88%
0 / 6
Lost
1916 Charles E. Hughes/Charles W. Fairbanks 102,30834.75%
0 / 6
Lost
1920 Warren G. Harding/Calvin Coolidge 173,24859.32%
6 / 6
Won
1924 Calvin Coolidge/Charles G. Dawes 195,17157.02%
6 / 6
Won
1928 Herbert Hoover/Charles Curtis 253,87264.72%
6 / 6
Won
1932 Herbert Hoover/Charles Curtis 189,61741.43%
0 / 6
Lost
1936 Alf Landon/Frank Knox 181,26737.09%
0 / 6
Lost
1940 Wendell Willkie/Charles L. McNary 279,57650.92%
6 / 6
Lost
1944 Thomas E. Dewey/John W. Bricker 268,73153.21%
6 / 6
Lost
1948 Thomas E. Dewey/Earl Warren 239,71446.52%
0 / 6
Lost
1952 Dwight D. Eisenhower/Richard Nixon 379,78260.27%
6 / 6
Won
1956 Dwight D. Eisenhower/Richard Nixon 394,47959.49%
6 / 6
Won
1960 Richard Nixon/Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. 402,24254.63%
6 / 6
Lost
1964 Barry Goldwater/William E. Miller 296,76738.19%
0 / 6
Lost
1968 Richard Nixon/Spiro Agnew 409,34550.46%
6 / 6
Won
1972 Richard Nixon/Spiro Agnew 597,18962.61%
7 / 7
Won
1976 Gerald Ford/Bob Dole 584,36754.05%
7 / 7
Lost
1980 Ronald Reagan/George H. W. Bush 652,26455.07%
7 / 7
Won
1984 Ronald Reagan/George H. W. Bush 821,81863.44%
8 / 8
Won
1988 George H. W. Bush/Dan Quayle 728,17753.06%
8 / 8
Won
1992 George H. W. Bush/Dan Quayle 562,85035.87%
0 / 8
Lost
1996 Bob Dole/Jack Kemp 691,84845.80%
8 / 8
Lost
2000 George W. Bush/Dick Cheney 883,74550.75%
8 / 8
Won
2004 George W. Bush/Dick Cheney 1,101,25551.69%
9 / 9
Won
2008 John McCain/Sarah Palin 1,073,62944.71%
0 / 9
Lost
2012 Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan 1,185,24346.13%
0 / 9
Lost
2016 Donald Trump/Mike Pence 1,202,48443.25%
0 / 9
Lost
2020 Donald Trump/Mike Pence 1,364,60741.90%
0 / 9
Lost
2024 Donald Trump/JD Vance 1,377,44143.14%
0 / 10
Lost

Gubernatorial

Colorado Republican Party gubernatorial election results
ElectionGubernatorial candidate/ticketVotesVote %Result
1876 John Long Routt 14,15451.53%WonGreen check.svg
1878 Frederick Walker Pitkin 14,30849.98%WonGreen check.svg
1880 Frederick Walker Pitkin 28,46553.28%WonGreen check.svg
1882 E. L. Campbell28,82046.91%LostRed x.svg
1884 Benjamin Harrison Eaton 33,84550.74%WonGreen check.svg
1886 William H. Meyer 26,81645.55%LostRed x.svg
1888 Job Adams Cooper 49,49053.84%WonGreen check.svg
1890 John Long Routt 41,82750.11%WonGreen check.svg
1892 Joseph Helm 38,80641.79%LostRed x.svg
1894 Albert McIntire 93,50251.95%WonGreen check.svg
1896 G. H. Allen23,94512.66%LostRed x.svg
1898 Henry R. Wolcott51,05134.17%LostRed x.svg
1900 Frank C. Goudy96,02743.53%LostRed x.svg
1902 James Hamilton Peabody 87,68446.94%WonGreen check.svg
1904 James Hamilton Peabody 113,75446.80%LostRed x.svg
1906 Henry Augustus Buchtel 92,60245.59%WonGreen check.svg
1908 Jesse Fuller McDonald 118,95345.16%LostRed x.svg
1910 John B. Stephen97,69143.48%LostRed x.svg
1912 Clifford C. Parks 63,06123.73%LostRed x.svg
1914 George Alfred Carlson 129,09648.67%WonGreen check.svg
1916 George Alfred Carlson 117,72341.28%LostRed x.svg
1918 Oliver Henry Shoup 112,69351.15%WonGreen check.svg
1920 Oliver Henry Shoup 174,48859.55%WonGreen check.svg
1922 Benjamin Griffith134,35348.29%LostRed x.svg
1924 Clarence Morley 178,07851.92%WonGreen check.svg
1926 Oliver Henry Shoup 116,75638.11%LostRed x.svg
1928 William L. Boatright114,06731.85%LostRed x.svg
1930 Robert F. Rockwell 124,16438.06%LostRed x.svg
1932 James D. Parriott183,25840.78%LostRed x.svg
1934 Nathan C. Warren162,79139.91%LostRed x.svg
1936 Charles M. Armstrong210,61443.65%LostRed x.svg
1938 Ralph Lawrence Carr 296,67159.50%WonGreen check.svg
1940 Ralph Lawrence Carr 296,67154.37%WonGreen check.svg
1942 John Charles Vivian 193,50156.23%WonGreen check.svg
1944 John Charles Vivian 259,86252.40%WonGreen check.svg
1946 Leon Lavington 160,48347.89%LostRed x.svg
1948 David A. Hamil 168,92833.67%LostRed x.svg
1950 Daniel I. J. Thornton 236,47252.43%WonGreen check.svg
1952 Daniel I. J. Thornton 349,92457.08%WonGreen check.svg
1954 Donald G. Brotzman 227,33546.44%LostRed x.svg
1956 Donald G. Brotzman 313,95048.66%LostRed x.svg
1958 Palmer Burch 228,64341.59%LostRed x.svg
1962 John Arthur Love 349,34256.67%WonGreen check.svg
1966 John Arthur Love 356,73054.05%WonGreen check.svg
1970 John Arthur Love/John D. Vanderhoof 350,69052.46%WonGreen check.svg
1974 John D. Vanderhoof/Ted L. Strickland 378,90745.71%LostRed x.svg
1978 Ted L. Strickland/Hank Brown 317,29238.53%LostRed x.svg
1982 John Fuhr/Robert E. Denier302,74031.67%LostRed x.svg
1986 Ted L. Strickland/Kathy Arnold434,42041.03%LostRed x.svg
1990 John Andrews/Lillian Bickel358,40335.43%LostRed x.svg
1994 Bruce D. Benson/Bob Schaeffer432,04238.70%LostRed x.svg
1998 Bill Owens/Joe Rogers 648,20249.06%WonGreen check.svg
2002 Bill Owens/Jane E. Norton 884,58362.62%WonGreen check.svg
2006 Bob Beauprez/Janet Rowland625,88640.2%LostRed x.svg
2010 Dan Maes/Tambor Williams 199,79211.1%LostRed x.svg
2014 Bob Beauprez/Jill Repella938,19545.95%LostRed x.svg
2018 Walker Stapleton/Lang Sias 1,080,80142.80%LostRed x.svg
2022 Heidi Ganahl/Danny Moore983,04039.2%LostRed x.svg

See also

Notes

    References

    1. "2024 Voter Registration Statistics". www.sos.state.co.us.
    2. Clark, Kyle (June 4, 2024). "Colorado Republican Party issues call to burn all Pride flags". 9 News.
    3. Coffey, Emily (10 June 2024). ""We make no apologies:" Colorado GOP Vice Chair doubles down on anti-LGBTQ+ statements". KRDO.
    4. "Fallout from Colo. GOP's anti-LGBTQ+ messages continues as state Republican leaders call on chairman to resign". Denver 7 Colorado News (KMGH). 2024-06-07. Retrieved 2024-06-08.
    5. 1 2 3 Burness 2021.
    6. 1 2 "Colorado GOP selects combative, election-denying new leader". AP NEWS. 2023-03-11. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
    7. "What happened to the Colorado Republican Party?". The Denver Post. 2020-12-20. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
    8. 1 2 3 Birkeland, Bente (14 November 2022). "'An extinction level event': Colorado Republicans react to deep election losses". Colorado Public Radio . Retrieved 2022-12-21.
    9. 1 2 "Colorado Republican party sees cashflow, spending plummet with election losses and leadership change". The Denver Post. 2023-06-21. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
    10. 1 2 Frank, John (26 June 2023). "Colorado GOP Marred by Infighting Under New Leader Dave Williams". Axios Denver.
    11. Frank 2016.
    12. Frank 2020.
    13. 1 2 3 Swanson & Burness 2020.
    14. Paul 2020.
    15. Paul & Frank 2018.
    16. Frank, John (25 February 2021). "Colorado GOP doubles down on Trump's baseless "stolen election" claims". Axios . Retrieved 9 October 2021.
    17. Paul, Jesse (2021-08-30). "Colorado Republicans want to win over unaffiliated voters in 2022. Can they do it if their base is still focused on 2020?". The Colorado Sun . Archived from the original on 2021-08-30. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
    18. "Ken Buck defends Colorado's election system against "conspiracy theory," angering fellow Trump supporters". The Denver Post . 2020-12-03. Archived from the original on 2020-12-03. Retrieved 2021-10-09. ...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.
    19. Birkeland, Bente (7 December 2020). "GOP State Reps Ask For Election Investigation In Spite Of Audit That Uncovered No Problems". Colorado Public Radio . Archived from the original on 2020-12-08. Retrieved 2021-10-13.
    20. Hindi, Saja (2020-12-15). "No evidence of widespread voter fraud uncovered in meeting on Colorado election integrity". The Denver Post . Archived from the original on 2020-12-16. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
    21. Aedo, Zachary (2020-12-10). "Lamborn, Buck among 106 House Republicans backing Texas lawsuit to overturn election". KRDO. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
    22. Case, Angela (2021-01-07). "How Colorado lawmakers voted in the Electoral College certification". FOX21 News Colorado. Archived from the original on 2021-01-11. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
    23. "Most Colorado Republicans in Congress will object to election certification". The Denver Post . 2021-01-04. Archived from the original on 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
    24. Melnick, Kyle (13 March 2023). "Colorado GOP picks election-denying former state legislator to lead party". The Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2023-03-23.
    25. Kim, Bente Birkeland,Caitlyn (14 June 2023). "In rare move, Colorado GOP goes after Republican Congressman". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved 2023-07-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
    26. Dorman, John L. "Colorado Republicans reckon with string of major electoral losses as Democrats strengthen their hand in the onetime GOP stronghold". Business Insider. Retrieved 2023-07-24.
    27. Paul, Jesse (2025-03-29). "Brita Horn, former county treasurer, elected to replace Dave Williams as Colorado GOP chair". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved 2025-03-31.
    28. ernest.luning@coloradopolitics.com, Ernest Luning (2025-03-29). "Colorado Republicans elect former county treasurer Brita Horn as state party chair". Colorado Politics. Retrieved 2025-03-31.
    29. Paul, Jesse; Nelson, Delaney; Fish, Sandra (November 9, 2022). "Republicans must wait until 2026 before they have any real shot at winning back power in Colorado". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
    30. Paul, Jesse (September 10, 2021). "Republican Heidi Hanahl files to run for Colorado governor in 2022". The Colorado Sun . Retrieved September 21, 2021. "The University of Colorado regent, who is the only Republican official who holds statewide office, was expected to formally announce her bid next week."

    Works cited