Denver 2018 Election Results: Polis, DeGette Win. Ballot Issues

DENVER, CO –Coloradans woke up to a Blue Wave in the state with all four state officers –governor, secretary of state, treasurer and attorney general – appearing to be elected Democrats, as well as Democratic majorities in all three state levels of government.

Mechanical glitches in four counties prevented statewide complete vote totals, until mid-morning Wednesday.

Republican attorney general candidate George Brauchler had still not conceded as of Wednesday morning. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Democrat Phil Weiser was up by 41,644 votes and had received 951,332 votes, or 49.67 percent of the tallied vote to Brauchler's 909,688 votes (47.49 percent). Libertarian candidate William Robinson won 54,474 votes, or 2.84 percent.

Democrat Phil Weiser declared unilateral victory. A first-time candidate and former Dean of CU's law school and a former member of presidents Obama and Clinton's Department of Justice teams, Weiser has said he would focus on the national role attorneys general play in U.S. policy.

Republican treasurer candidate businessman Brian Watson had also not conceded, although he was clearly behind top vote-getter Greeley state legislator and college instructor Democrat David Young who had 909,688 votes, or 50.56 percent of the vote. Watson's total Wednesday morning was 892,058, or 46.88 percent. Action Party candidate Gerald F. Kilpatrick won 48,581, or 2.84 percent.

Polis declares early

Democrat multi-millionaire Congressman Jared Polis was first to declare victory, in the Colorado Governor's race, by 8 p.m. Polis was ahead in early returns with 51.34 percent of the vote.

By Wednesday morning, with 100 percent of counties reporting, Polis had gained 998,916 votes, or 51.58 percent of the vote. Republican Walker Stapleton was the second top vote-getter with 870,844 votes, or 44.97 percent. Libertarian Scott Helker and Unity Party's Bill Hammons received 48,188 2.49 percent) and 18,499 (0.96 percent) votes respectively.

"In Colorado, we dare, we dream and we do," Polis said in his victory speech. "Whether it's embracing big ideas or hiking our amazing mountains, we don't back down when something is challenging. We see problems as opportunities in our state of Colorado."

Polis will be the first Jewish governor of Colorado and the first openly gay governor in the United States. His partner, Marlon Reis, and their two children joined Polis on stage.

The race was financially lopsided from the beginning, with Polis dumping $23 million of his own funds into what was to become a total of $200 million spent on the election. Polis refused any individual donation above $100 and has brought in only about half-a-million from individual donations. Stapleton’s campaign spent about $4 million, as of the most recent campaign finance disclosures. The two-term treasurer dumped about $1 million of his own cash into the race during the Republican primary race.

Other statewide races

Secretary of State

Democrat voting rights attorney and first-time candidate Jena Griswold declared victory over incumbent Republican Wayne Williams for Secretary of State. With 32 percent of counties reporting, Williams conceded the race around 9:40 p.m.

Wednesday morning, Griswold had gained 974,233 votes, or 50.87 percent to Williams's 896,366 votes, or 46.80 percent. Third-party candidates Amanda Campbell and Blake Huber won 35,875 votes (1.87 percent) and 8,732 votes (0.46 percent), respectively.

Here are final results in Denver

Colorado 1st Congressional District

Ten-term Congresswoman Diana DeGette, House Chief Deputy Whip, was easily the top vote-getter with 147,329, or 71.57 percent of the vote compared to Republican Casper Stockham and Librtarian Raymon Doan with 53,382 (29.53 percent) and 5,135 (2.49 percent) respectively. DeGette was first elected in 1997 to the seat formerly held by groundbreaking female Colorado Congresswoman Pat Schroeder.

State Sen. Dist. 16

In State Sen. Dist. 16, Tammy Story beat incumbent Republican Tim Neville. Story had a wide lead with 35,061 votes or 55.34 percent of the vote. Neville had received 26,668 votes, or 42.09 percent. Libertarian James Gillman won 1,629 or 2.57 percent of the votes.

Story, an education reformer and mother from Conifer, helped recall three members on the Jefferson County school board after a divisive debate over conservative school policies.

First-Time Latino Denver Democratic Statehouse Candidates Create a New Cohort In 2018.

In Denver’s Statehouse races, where open seats generated primaries in June, a cohort of progressive newbie Democratic candidates were the top vote-getters, and most of them are Latino. After winning elections, in heavily Democratic districts, they will bring a new team of Latino progressive representation to the statehouse.

State Sen. Dist. 32 (Open)

Rodriguez won easily with 27,697 votes, or 70.88 percent against the 9,911 votes (25.36 percent) cast for Mark Calonder (Republican) and the 1,470 (3.76 percent) for Peter Lucas Smith (Independent) in final returns. The seat is open because Incumbent state Sen. Irene Aguilar is term-limited. Democrat Robert Rodriguez 49, has served as former vice chair of the Democratic Party of Denver but ran for the first time in the June Democratic primary. Rodriguez was specifically working to boost minority representation in local politics, and now he will be that representation himself. Rodriguez beat out two other opponents in the June primary.

“If I want to represent my values — look at everything through a lens of how it affects people, rather than how it benefits corporations, I can only trust myself. So I waded in,” Rodriguez told the Denverite in June.

State Sen. Dist. 34 (Open)

Julie Gonzales (Democrat) easily won with 25,258 votes, or 82.14 percent, against Gordon Alley (Republican), who won 5,492 votes (17.86 percent). Incumbent state Sen. Lucia Guzman is term-limited. A graduate of Yale University, Gonzales co-founded the leading Hispanic nonprofit advocacy group the Colorado Latino Forum and pushed for a hotly contested 2013 bill to allow undocumented immigrants to attend college and pay in-state tuition.

State House Dist. 4 (Open)

Serena Gonzalez-Gutierrez was the top vote-getter winning 13,394 votes (81.79 percent) against stealth Republican Robert 'Dave' John who got 2,983, or 18.21 percent. House District 4 State Rep. Don Pabon was term-limited. Gonzalez-Gutierrez, daughter of Denver 1960s Chicano activist Corky Gonzalez has worked many years with juveniles in the criminal justice system, but taking part in Emerge Colorado trained her to run for office, she said.

State House Dist. 5 (Open)

Businessman Alex Valdez was top vote-getter in final returns, winning 12,096 votes, or 78.09 percent against Katherine E Whitney (Republican) and Libertarian Rory Lamberton, who received 2,990 (19.30 percent) and 404 (2.61 percent) respectively. State House Democratic Chair Crisanta Duran is term-limited out. Valdez founded residential solar company EcoMark Solar. His campaign describes him as a “Proud member of the LGBTQ community.” Valdez, who grew up in Aurora, was a Democratic precinct captain in House District 5 and a protege of Duran.

Other Denver area races:

State House Dist. 9 (Open)

Democrat Emily Sirota was the top vote-getter in final returns with 15,317 votes, or 70.37 percent against Republican Robert Jude Lane, who received 6,450 votes (29.63 percent). Dubbed the #MeToo district, Dist. 9 lost its long-time incumbent Paul Rosenthal after he was one of several Colorado lawmakers accused of sexual harassment last fall. Rosenthal failed to get enough delegate votes in early district assembly meetings and Emily Sirota won the primary, with a special endorsement from U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.

State House Dist. 1

Susan Lontine (Democrat) Incumbent won easily with 8,991 votes (61.50 percent) against GOP candidate Alysia Padilla and Libertarian Darrell Dinges with 5,136 (35.13 percent) and 493 (3.37 percent) respectively.

State House Dist. 2 Alec Garnett (Democrat) incumbent was unopposed.

State House Dist. 6 Christopher Hansen (Democrat) incumbent was unopposed.

State House Dist. 7 James Rashad Coleman (Democrat) easily won with 12,681 votes, or 82.55 percent against Republican Jay Frank Kucera, who got 2,680 votes (17.45 percent).

State House Dist. 8 Leslie Herod (Democrat) incumbent was unopposed.

Ballot issues for Denver:

As of 10 p.m., the following results had come in on Denver's ballot measures:

YES -REFERRED MEASURE 2A - A quarter-penny sales tax/use increase for parks in Denver.

YES - REFERRED MEASURE 2B - Would change the number of valid signatures required to place an initiative or referendum on the ballot from a percentage of votes cast for Mayor in the last election to a percentage of active registered voters in Denver.

YES - REFERRED MEASURE 2C - Would promote "greater flexibility" in the hiring of lateral recruits for classified service in the Denver Police Department.

YES - REFERRED MEASURE 2D - Would give the County Clerk-Recorder's office at-will hiring powers for Deputy Clerk and Recorder and two other jobs. Would eliminate the requirement that the Director of Elections must be an at-will appointee of the Clerk and Recorder.

YES - REFERRED MEASURE 2E - Would ban corporations and other entities from donating directly to candidates, lower contribution limits, and create a Fair Elections Fund to match donations of 50 dollars or less at a ratio of 9 to 1 to candidates who voluntarily agree to raise money in lower amounts and take contributions only from natural persons.

NO - INITIATED ORDINANCE 300 - Would fund college scholarships for Denver students via a .08 percent sales tax increase up to $13.9 million annually.

YES - INITIATED ORDINANCE 301 - Would raise money for youth mental health and suicide prevention programs for Denver children by raising sales tax by .25 percent of a penny up to $45 million annually.

YES- INITIATED ORDINANCE 302 - Would fund a 13-member Denver Food Commission to provide "healthy food and food-based education" by raising sales tax by .08 percent up to $11.2 million annually.

YES -BALLOT ISSUE 7G - Would pay for a regional 1-mill tax levy increase to pay for metro-Denver anti-flooding work.

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