Colorado's early vote lags ahead of primary election
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Just 1 in 10 registered voters in Colorado has cast a ballot a week before the statewide primary election, an Axios analysis shows.
Why it matters: Colorado's primary is now as important — if not more so — than the general election in November.
- State-level offices are dominated by Democrats, making the party's pick the de facto favorite.
- Seven of the eight congressional districts strongly favor one party, meaning the dominant party's candidate is effectively the winner ahead of November's general election.
State of play: Through Tuesday, the state counted 505,538 ballots from its roughly 4.5 million registered voters, equating to an 11% turnout, Axios found.
- By party, turnout among Democrats (21%) is greater than Republicans (17%) and unaffiliated voters (8%).
- Unaffiliated voters — who represent the majority and can choose to vote in either primary — are picking the Democratic ballot by a 2-to-1 margin.
The big picture: In 2018's election, the most recent midterm with state-level and congressional races, registered voter turnout in Colorado reached 30% — roughly 1.3 million ballots cast.
The intrigue: If the turnout percentage from 2018 holds, it means an additional 840,000 ballots are projected to land in the final week ahead of next Tuesday's primary.
- Most voters cast ballots on Election Day, and a late influx of votes will delay ballot counting and election results, county clerks warn.
Zoom in: The state's two largest counties, El Paso and Denver, are slightly lagging in turnout compared with the state average.
- 10% of El Paso registered voters — and just 9% in Denver — have returned ballots, according to an analysis of the latest state tallies.
- The highest percentage turnout is found in rural counties with far fewer voters.
The bottom line: The campaigns' get-out-the-vote efforts in the final days before the election may prove to be the deciding factor in key races.