Colorado House, Senate primaries in key Democratic races

Denver’s progressive Democratic Reps. Elisabeth Epps and Tim Hernández lost to their top challengers Tuesday night, amid a broader set of mixed results for more left-leaning candidates for seats in the Legislature.

Their races were among several mentioned by the Associated Press on Tuesday evening. A series of contested state House races had been billed as a battle over the direction of the Democratic Party, although not every race had a clear ideological split.

Outside spending aimed at influencing the outcomes of the Democratic House and Senate primaries is approaching $4 million.

Here’s a look at the key Democratic primaries in results posted on the Colorado Secretary of State’s website Tuesday at 10:30 p.m.:

• Denver’s House District 4: Rep. Tim Hernández 45%, Cecelia Espenoza 54% (declared winner by AP).
• Denver’s House District 6: Rep. Elisabeth Epps 36%, Sean Camacho 64% (declared winner by AP).
• Lakewood’s House District 30: Kyra deGruy Kennedy 41%, Rebekah Stewart 59%.
• Thornton’s House District 31: Rep. Julia Marvin 45%, Jacque Phillips 55% (declared winner by AP).
• Aurora’s House District 36: Michael Carter 61% (declared winner by AP), Bryan Lindstrom 39%.
• Fort Collins’ House District 52: Ethnie Groves Treick 38%, Yara Zokaie 62% (declared winner by AP).
• Boulder’s Senate District 18: Rep. Judy Amabile 78% (declared winner by AP), Jovita Schiffer 22%.
• Arvada and Westminster’s Senate District 19: Rep. Lindsey Daugherty 65% ​​(declared winner by AP), Obi Ezeadi 35%.
• Aurora’s Senate District 28: Rep. Mike Weissman 54% (declared winner by AP), Idris Keith 46%.

Voter turnout as of Tuesday afternoon lagged behind the pace of voting results during the 2020 and 2022 primaries, indicating lower voter interest. But the final turnout figures won’t be available until later this week.

The outside spending in these hotly contested races pits charter school supporters against the Colorado Education Association, union members against the AFL-CIO, and traditional Republican supporters against longtime Democratic boosters.

Much of the nearly $4 million spent to boost more moderate candidates against more progressive opponents and vice versa was opaque and its original sources hidden.

With the exception of Weissman and Zokaie, the candidates who won in those races were supported by last-minute spending by a group backed by Kent Thiry, the Denver millionaire, or by a network affiliated with One Main Street, a nonprofit with mostly hidden donors saying it promoted “pragmatic” Democrats.

Zokaie, Weissman and several other more left-wing candidates were generally supported by the AFL-CIO and the Colorado Education Association, which spent hundreds of thousands of dollars supporting them. Weissman, who worked extensively on consumer protection measures as a member of the House of Representatives, also faced heavy spending from a dark money group seemingly created solely to oppose his Senate bid.

Epps, a first-term incumbent candidate in Central and East Denver who had drawn the ire of party leaders and fellow lawmakers for her criticism and disruptions within the party during a special session in November, had nearly 3,400 votes as of 11 p.m. lost, a difficult setback to overcome.

Hernández, like Epps one of the most left-wing members of the General Assembly, was closer to his opponent, Espenoza, but also had a significant gap to catch up.

Hernández defeated Espenoza in a vacancy committee selection last year. Marvin similarly defeated Phillips, who she lost on Tuesday when she was appointed to represent Thornton in the House of Representatives earlier this year.

In another vacancy rematch, Boulder Democratic Rep. Junie Joseph defeated her 2022 opponent. Unlike Hernández and Marvin, Joseph’s win kept her from getting voted into the general election just two years ago, rather than putting her directly to the Capitol.

The focus on Democratic primaries — especially from business groups that had previously become involved in Republican races — has increased as Republican power in the state has waned and Democrats have jockeyed for influence over the now dominant party, which holds large majorities in both chambers . .

The total outside spending includes more than $1 million in last-minute purchases from a brand new group backed by Thiry, the former CEO and millionaire of DaVita, who is pushing for an overhaul of the state’s election system.