DENVER — While some of the outcomes from Colorado’s 2024 election were more obvious, such as Kamala Harris winning the state by 12 points, voters also gave some lesser known surprises.
Complete Colorado looked at some of what we thought were some of the more interesting outcomes, which include bucking an ever-growing blue trend in favor of Republicans, and a few spoiler candidates.
- In Pueblo, sitting county commissioner Epimenio “Eppie” Griego ran as an unaffiliated, potentially played spoiler for Republican candidate Steven Rodriguez by taking nearly 18,000 votes in a race that was ultimately decided by under 2,000 votes. Democrat Miles Lucero won the race with only a plurality of just over 42 percent to his GOP opponent’s slightly more than 40 percent.
- Libertarian Senate District 12 (El Paso County) candidate John Angle won 2,755 votes in a race where Republican Stan VanderWerf lost to Democrat Marc Snyder by just 1,030 votes.
- Pueblo elected its first ever female and Republican to the office of district attorney for the 10th Judicial District. “Together, we have shattered glass ceilings and set a powerful example for Colorado,” said Kala Beauvais, a fifth-generation Puebloan in a statement after her election.
- Pueblo voters also ousted incumbent Democrat Daneya Esgar, a former state legislator, as their county commissioner in favor of newcomer Republican Paula McPheeters, giving Republicans a 2-1 edge on that previously Democrat majority board.
- In Huerfano County voters strengthened Republican control of their county commission to 3-0, as Democrat incumbent Arica Andreatta lost her reelection bid to Republican Jim Chamberlain by just 33 votes.
- Also, Huerfano voters flipped every other county office to Republicans. Interestingly, the Huerfano GOP was the first county party to call for the resignation of Colorado Republican Party Chairman Dave Williams.
- Weld County’s House District 50, which had about an 8 percentage point Democrat advantage until the redistricting two years ago, had not seen a Republican in that seat since 2004. Although redistricting narrowed the advantage, Democrats still had a 4 percentage point advantage in 2024. However, Republican Ryan Gonzalez won the seat by 563 votes.
- Republicans also flipped Congressional District 8 seats in both the US House of Representatives and the State board of Education, with Republican Gabe Evans defeating incumbent Yadira Caraveo and Republican Yazmin Navarro defeating Democrat Rhonda Solis. Republicans now hold all three seats in the toss up CD 8, as Republican Mark VanDriel won the CU Regent seat in 2020.
Other examples of a change in voter preference might be seen in the outcome of several ballot measures that went in unexpected directions.
- Voters rejected the statewide efforts to ban mountain lion, lynx and bobcat hunting with 55 percent of voters against the measure.
- Voters rejected efforts to convert Colorado Primaries to an open jungle style primary and the general election into Ranked Choice Voting with the top four winners from the primary advancing to the general.
- In Denver, voters said no way to a ban on slaughterhouses that was aimed at just one business, Superior Farms, the nation’s largest lamb processing plant.
- In both Denver and Adams County, voters shot down tax increases aimed at subsidized housing.
