Colorado Congressional Map: New District Would Be North Of Denver

DENVER, CO — The Colorado Independent Congressional Redistricting Commission has redrawn the state's congressional districts, adding a new district that would cover the north Denver suburbs.

Colorado's proposed 8th Congressional District would sit along the I-25 corridor north of Denver and would lean slightly to the left politically, Colorado Public Radio reported.

It would be Colorado's most competitive district – according to the radio station, out of the state's seven other districts, four are solidly Democratic and three are solidly Republican.

The district is projected to have the state's highest concentration of Latino voters, The Denver Post reported.

Colorado was granted an additional district after the 2020 U.S. Census found that its population had increased by 14.8 percent since 2010.

The commission approved the map on Tuesday night "after several rounds of voting," officials said on Twitter. It is subject to final approval by the Colorado Supreme Court, which will issue an opinion no later than Nov. 1.

Eleven of the commission's 12 members voted in favor of the map, with one member opposing it, officials said in a news release. The commission was made up of four Democrats, four Republicans and four unaffiliated voters, according to The Denver Post.

"The thousands of public comments from Coloradans, diligent map-making from the staff, and thoughtful discussions from the commission are all what led us to this moment," Commission Chair Carly Hare said. "It has been an honor to chair the first Colorado Independent Congressional Redistricting Commission and hope we’ve set a standard for other states to follow in the future."

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