Attorney General candidate Phil Weiser sits in on an endorsement meeting with The Sentinel editorial staff, Oct. 2. Photo by Philip B. Poston/The Sentinel
Attorney General candidate Phil Weiser sits in on an endorsement meeting with The Sentinel editorial staff, Oct. 2.
Photo by Philip B. Poston/The Sentinel

AURORA | Democrat Phil Weiser clinched the attorney general’s office in a close race with Republican George Brauchler, the 18th Judicial District Attorney.

Weiser rode to victory late on Tuesday night with about 47.5 percent of the vote as of 11 p.m. Brauchler secured 47.7 percent of the vote.

The attorney general is Colorado’s top lawyer, responsible for providing legal advice to state government agencies and local governments while ensuring compliance with state law. The attorney general also represents the state in lawsuits, but much of the responsibility is protecting consumers from fraud schemes large and small.

Weiser has been dean of the University of Colorado law school, a clerk of Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Byron White, and a two-time official in the Department of Justice.