Election season is back in full swing, flinging Coloradans even further into the national political turmoil.
The last of the ballots for Colorado's 2024 presidential primary election were mailed on February 16. Registered voters now have until 7 p.m. today, March 5, to choose between eighteen Democratic and Republican candidates, including the same two men who faced off during the 2020 presidential election: President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump.
Things got a bit more complicated this year, though. After months of uncertainty, the U.S. Supreme Court just ruled that Trump is eligible for this state's Republican primary ballot. And with dwindling approval ratings for incumbent Biden, Colorado's Democratic voters will have the option to vote for none of the party's primary candidates for only the second time in state history.
Here's everything you need to know about the presidential primary election this year...except who to vote for.
How to Vote?
Colorado's active registered voters should have received their ballots in the mail. It's too late to return that ballot by mail, but you can still drop it in a ballot drop box or at an in-person voting center by 7 p.m. on Election Day, March 5. Find the nearest voting locations at sos.state.co.us.Coloradans who aren't registered to vote can register at an in-person voting center up until 7 p.m. on Election Day. They'll be able to register, get a ballot and cast their vote all at once.
Registered voters who haven't received their ballot in the mail or who lost their ballot can request a replacement from their county clerk; the contact information for each county clerk's office is available at coloradosos.gov. They can also vote in person at a voting center without receiving a mail ballot.
Who Can Vote in Which Primary?
The purpose of the primary election is to nominate a presidential candidate from each major political party to appear on the general election ballot in November. The votes that candidates receive determine the number of delegates that will be allocated to support them at their party's national convention.Coloradans who are registered with either the Republican or Democratic Party are only able to vote in their party's primary election. Voters registered with minor parties cannot vote in the presidential primary. But unaffiliated voters can vote in either the Republican or Democratic primary; they should have received ballots for both party primaries and can choose which one to submit. In order for that vote to be counted, an unaffiliated voter can only submit a ballot for one party.
The deadline for Coloradans to change their party affiliation before the presidential primary election was February 12, so for the March election, you're stuck with your current party affiliation. But if you're not registered at all, you still have time...again, you can register up until 7 p.m. Election Day.
Who's on the Ballot?
Eighteen candidates filed paperwork with the Colorado Secretary of State's Office for the presidential primary: nine Democrats and nine Republicans. But not all of the candidates are still in the race.The nine Republican candidates are Trump, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, Vivek Ramaswamy, Ryan Binkley, Rachel Hannah Swift and Walter Iwachiw. However, at least four of the candidates have publicly suspended their campaigns since the ballot was certified in January, including DeSantis, Christie, Hutchinson and Ramaswamy.
Six voters had filed suit in September to keep Trump off the ballot, claiming that he was ineligible under the Fourteenth Amendment; although a Denver judge ruled against them, the Colorado Supreme Court overturned that decision in December, determining that Trump was not eligible. After Trump appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court and that court decided to take the case, however, his name was put on the ballot...and on March 4, the Supreme Court ruled that any votes for him are valid.
The nine Democratic candidates on the ballot are Biden, Jason Michael Palmer, Gabriel Cornejo, Frankie Lozada, Dean Phillips, Stephen Lyons, Marianne Williamson, Armando Perez-Serrato and "non-committed delegate." Williamson has publicly suspended her campaign.
Vote for the "non-committed delegate" option on the Democratic primary ballot and you're choosing to send a delegate to the Democratic National Convention who can support any candidate. A vote for the "non-committed delegate" essentially serves as a "no preference" vote for those who do not want to vote for any of the Democratic candidates.
What Are Coloradans Doing?
Coloradans on all sides of the ideological spectrum are gearing up for battle as the presidential primary approaches — particularly regarding Trump.An anti-Trump super PAC called PrimaryPivot recently expanded its operations to Colorado. In February, the group says, it sent texts to 12,500 Colorado Democrats, encouraging them to change their registration to unaffiliated so they can vote in the Republican primary election — but if they didn't do so by February 12, it's too late.
Sarah Lenti, former executive director of the Lincoln Project, a centrist Republican political action committee that fought Trump's candidacy in 2020, is leading PrimaryPivot's Colorado efforts. She says that since Biden is all but guaranteed to win the Democratic primary, Democrats and unaffiliated voters should turn their attention to making sure Trump loses the Republican primary.
"If you’re an unaffiliated Colorado voter who believes that Trump and Trumpism represent a unique and dangerous threat to the U.S., then you have the opportunity to vote 'no' to Donald Trump and ‘yes' to Nikki Haley," Lenti says. “Colorado’s presidential primary system is an example of democracy in action. ... Your vote could make the difference, at least in this state."
"Looks like another leftwing dark money group engaging in election interference and chaos because they know Joe Biden is headed for a 'YUGE' defeat against President Donald J. Trump come November," says Dave Williams, Colorado Republican Party chair, in response to PrimaryPivot's move into the state.
Meanwhile, Williams intends to do whatever it takes to make sure Trump becomes the party's nominee. "I’m not going to let these sons of bitches dictate who we’re going to nominate,” Williams said on X.
What's Next?
The presidential primary election is only the beginning of election season.The Republican and Democratic precinct caucuses will be held between March 5 and 9, beginning an assembly process that will last until mid-April and the state party conventions. There, party members will nominate candidates to be on the state's primary ballot for races including county offices, the Colorado Legislature and the U.S. Congress.
The state's primary election for those offices will be held on June 25. Voters have until June 3 to change their party affiliation if they want to vote in a different party's primary election; unaffiliated voters will again be allowed to choose which party's ballot they want to cast in the state primary.
The general election is set for November 5. Keep an eye on our Election topic page for all of our latest coverage.
