DENVER — As election workers count and verify all ballots from Tuesday's 2026 primary election, the Colorado Secretary of State's Office said so far, this has been the highest voter turnout since at least 2018 — outside of the primary during the COVID-19 pandemic.
2020 is the one exception, considering how the COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented circumstances in all facets of life, including elections.
The voter turnout for state primary elections dating back to 2018 is as follows:
- 2026 — 36.2% (based on numbers as of 11:59 pm Tuesday, and subject to change as ballot confirmations continue)
- 2024 — 25.5%
- 2022 — 32.5%
- 2020 — 47.3%
- 2018 — 35.4%
1,457,832 ballots have been returned statewide so far, as of 11:59 p.m. Tuesday. There are still more than 247,000 votes left to be processed.
The majority of the ballots that have been counted and verified were via mail as has been established practice in Colorado for years. 24,648 ballots were cast in person.
The voter turnout in Tuesday's primary was nearly an even split between Democrats and Republicans. Democrats took a slight edge with 98,163 more votes. While that seems like a high number, it's 6.7% of the total number of voters.
"The difference really is in this shift between Republicans taking the lead in 2022 and Democrats taking the lead this year, or at least folks that are turning in Democratic ballots... outnumbering Republican ballots," Robert Preuhs, chair of political science at MSU Denver, told Denver7 Tuesday afternoon to explain the trend.
Politics
Colorado primary election turnout trending higher than past years
While many of Colorado's races have been called, the one outstanding is a close call between the Republican candidates for the state's governor race. Both Barbara Kirkmeyer and Victor Marx hold 40% of the vote, as of 12:55 p.m. Wednesday.
Election Results
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