Michael Bloomberg looks to be Colorado kingmaker
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Michael Bloomberg at a meeting in September in New York. Photo: Patrick van Katwijk/Getty Images
Billionaire Michael Bloomberg is investing a small fortune in Colorado campaigns.
Why it matters: The former presidential candidate and three-term New York mayor is emerging as a kingmaker with record-level donations to influence voters in the 2025 election — and the 2026 campaign.
Follow the money: Bloomberg made the two largest individual contributions in Denver history. He donated $1.15 million in October and $1.5 million in September to support Denver's flavored tobacco ban, Referendum 301, according to an Axios analysis of campaign records dating to 2012.
- He also gave the campaign, Denver Kids vs. Big Tobacco, $73,500 in August, bringing his total investment in the contest so far to $2.7 million. That's 84% of the $3.2 million the ban's backers have collected.
- Tobacco Free Kids, an initiative Bloomberg supports, gave another $364,000 to the campaign.
The intrigue: For now, Bloomberg is also the largest donor in the 2026 governor's race. He recently gave $500,000 to a super PAC supporting U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet's campaign.
- A spokesperson for Bloomberg did not return a message left Monday at his charity seeking information about his donations in Colorado.
The big picture: Political donations from out-of-state billionaires often don't sit well with voters, but Bloomberg is not new to the Colorado scene.
- He has donated at least $3.3 million to Denver campaigns in the past decade, and more than $8.3 million to statewide candidates and causes since 2010, our number-crunching found.
- Bloomberg is interested in public health initiatives, like Referendum 310, and public school reforms, which Bennet has previously led as Denver's school superintendent.
The other side: Opponents of the city's flavored tobacco ban, the Citizen Power! committee, are also collecting large-dollar checks, but nothing on the scale of the supporters.
- The Cigarette Store gave $15,000 and Swisher International contributed $12,500 in October, reports show. Cigarette makers previously gave $150,000 to help get the initiative on the Denver ballot.
- Through Oct. 14, the committee has reported fundraising $533,000.
What they're saying: Phil Guerin, a smoke shop owner in Denver who is leading the opposition to the ban, criticized Bloomberg for intruding in the race.
- Guerin says his side is not run by Big Tobacco, despite the donations. "This is mostly a grassroots effort" from small businesses, he said.