ELECTION RESULTS 2016: Colorado, Aurora votes for stasis despite seismic national shift

AURORA | Colorado and Aurora chose a Democrat for president for the third consecutive cycle, and returned an incumbent senator and all seven members of Congress to Washington.

Perhaps the biggest change endorsed by Colorado voters Tuesday was a measure to help the terminally ill access life-ending drugs. Proposition 106 had performed well in polls and didn’t dominate debate this election year.

Colorado voters overwhelmingly rejected a measure to start the nation’s first universal health care measure. Amendment 69 would have set up a first-in-the-nation payroll tax to replace private health insurance.

Republican Kevin Priola’s win in an Adams County seat currently held by a Democrat ensured that the GOP will keep its state Senate majority. Democrats retained their hold on the state House.

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U.S. PRESIDENT: TRUMP-R vs CLINTON-D

Following one of the longest and most caustic presidential battles in history, here’s how your neighbors in Aurora, neighboring communities and the state voted on the question of the year.

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U.S. SENATE: Bennet-D vs Glenn-R

Originally considered one of the Democrats whom Republicans hoped to oust, Sen. Michael Bennet handily fended off a challenge from El Paso County Commissioner Darryl Glenn, who emerged from a GOP primary field devoid of big names and has struggled to win over the party establishment.

Glenn, a military veteran making his first statewide run, got the endorsement of Sen. Ted Cruz, the runner-up for the Republican presidential nomination. He made his national debut on stage at the Republican National Convention.

But while Bennet has touted his support on the traditionally conservative Western Slope, Glenn spent comparatively little time trying to make inroads in heavily Democratic areas, despite a stump speech that often references his knowing what it’s like to be a black man racially profiled by police.

Aurora voters reflected the statewide trend to stay with Bennet.

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U.S. HOUSE 6th CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT:  Coffman-R vs Carroll-D

In the closely-watched race for Colorado Sixth Congressional District, incumbent Republican Mike Coffman won re-election to a fourth term with a sizable lead over Democratic challenger Morgan Carroll.

“They threw everything against me except the kitchen sink,” said Coffman Nov. 8 to ebullient Colorado GOP supporters at the Double Tree by Hilton hotel in the Denver Tech Center.  “It didn’t work.”

Coffman also received some boos from the crowd with supporters yelling “Trump” throughout the Congressman’s acceptance speech. Coffman has said throughout his campaign he does not endorse Trump for president, and that he would not vote for him.

Coffman also touted his record of once again winning a minority-majority district, made up largely of Aurora residents, where one in five are foreign-born.

Floyd. Trujillo, a Coffman and Trump supporter who attended the GOP party at the Doubletree, said he was one of the Hispanic voters who has stood staunchly by the Republican party.

“Trump is on the right track. He’s on the right track as a businessman,” said Trujillo, who works in the oil and gas industry. He said he finds it demeaning that Democrats try to win over Hispanics by offering handouts in the way of special scholarships and jobs programs.

“People are tired of career politicians that give us all talk. We want  action from politicians, he said. “I don’t vote for the personality of Trump or Hillary, I vote for the values behind the party.”

Carroll, an attorney and former state lawmaker, conceded defeat shortly before 10:30 p.m. at an election night viewing party organized by the Arapahoe County Democrats in Aurora.

“This is tough,” Carroll said to a crowd of volunteers and supporters, many of whom still clung to white yard signs that had Carroll’s name stenciled in purple script. “This isn’t exactly what we thought this would turn out to be for many of us, and I think we’re also watching, biting our nails on the outcome of a lot of other races right now that are going on.”

Carroll pointed to incumbent Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet’s victory, the success of Amendment 70, which sought to increase the state’s minimum wage to $12 an hour, and the campaign victories of several Democrats in Arapahoe County, as silver linings for her party.

“Together, we are going to continue to fight every day for social justice, for economic justice, for the things we believe in,” she said. “Because the alternative is not acceptable — no matter who is in elected office.”

In Douglas County, Coffman led Carroll by more than 12,000 votes, according to early returns. Coffman received 27,960 votes in the conservative county, while Carroll received 15, 921. That’s a margin of 60 percent to 34 percent. 

Coffman also leads in the more-liberal Arapahoe County. With about 200,000 votes counted there, Coffman holds a 49 percent to 45 percent lead over Carroll with almost 98,000 votes for Coffman and 92,000 for Carroll. 

“Throughout this race, I have celebrated the people of this district and the diversity of this district,” Coffman said in a statement. “From new citizens seeking the American Dream, the soldiers who fight every day for our freedom, the job creators, the moms and dads, the young people seeking their first jobs, and the veterans who have made so many sacrifices for our great nation.”

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LEGISLATURE: State House and Senate district’s in and near Aurora

Colorado’s state legislature will stay split, with Republicans maintaining control of the Senate and Democrats retaining their House majority. Republican Kevin Priola defeated Democrat Jenise May in Aurora’s Adams County Senate district currently held by Democrat Mary Hodge, who didn’t seek re-election.

Priola’s win ensures Republicans will retain at least a one-seat majority in the 35-seat Senate.

Democrats have retained their advantage in the state House. Democrats picked up a seat in Adams County when Dafna Michaelson Jenet defeated incumbent Republican Rep. JoAnn Windholz in another Aurora district.

.With Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper in office for another two years, Democrats had aimed to control both chambers of the Statehouse.

In state Senate District 27, incumbent Republican Jack Tate is cruising to victory over Democrat and political newcomer Tom Sullivan. As of Wednesday, Tate has 53 percent of the vote compared to 47 percent for Sullivan, who jumped into politics after his son was gunned down in the July 2012 Aurora theater shooting.

State Senate District 26 appears poised to stay blue as Democrat Daniel Kagan leads Republican Nancy Doty 53 percent to 47 percent. The seat was previously held by Democrat Linda Newell, who is term limited.

State Senate District 25 is poised to flip as Republican Kevin Priola leads Democrat Jenise May in the race to replace term-limited Democrat Mary Hodge. Priola has about 54 percent of the vote compared to 46 percent for May in the district that includes parts of north Aurora.

In house District 30, Republican JoAnn Windholz is one of the few incumbents trailing. The Democrat in the race, Dafna Michaelson Jenet, leads Windholz 52 percent to 48 percent as of Wednesday morning.

Democrat Mike Weissman is leading in house District 36 against Republican Richard Bowman. Weissman has 55 percent compared to 45 percent for Bowman in the race to replace term-limited Democrat Su Ryden.

In House District 37, Republican Cole Wist is leading Democrat Carol A. Barrett 54 percent to 46 percent. Wist is the incumbent in the race after being a vacancy committee selected him to replace Jack Tate earlier this year when Tate moved to the state Senate.

Republican Susan Beckman has a sizeable lead in house District 28 over Democrat Robert Bowen, 58 percent to 42 percent.

Democrat Janet Buckner cruised to victory in house District 40, beating her Republican opponent, Todd Brophy, 57 percent to 43 percent as of Wednesday morning.

Incumbent Democrat Jovan Melton is poised win another term in house District 41, where he leads Republican Linda Garrison 59 percent to 41 percent.

In north Aurora’s house District 42, Dominique Jackson throttled Republican Mike Donald 68 percent to 32 percent.

The house District 56 race wasn’t particularly close, either, with Republican Philip Covanrrubias topping Democrat Matthew Snider 59 percent to 36 percent.

Democrat Nancy Todd is leading her Republican challenger, James Woodley in the state Senate District 28 race, 56 percent to 44 percent.

Democrat Rhonda Fields is set to take the Senate District 29 seat last held by Morgan Carroll. She leads Republican Sebastian Chunn 54 percent to 40 percent.

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BALLOT QUESTIONS: THE RIGHT TO DIE. MINIMUM WAGE, UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE AND OTHER PROPOSALS

Coloradans voted to restore a presidential primary, raise the minimum wage and allow terminally ill patients to end their own lives in an election that also will make it tougher to get constitutional initiatives onto future ballots.

Voters soundly rejected a universal health care initiative and a proposed cigarette tax increase. Coloradans approved replacing the current Republican and Democratic presidential caucuses with winner-take-all presidential primaries.

Other notable statewide questions that appeared to pass restores a presidential primary and whether to make it harder to put constitutional amendments on the ballot and harder still to vote them into law.

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ADAMS COUNTY RACES: COUNTY COMMISIONERS AND DISTRICT ATTORNEY

In Adams County, voters are casting ballots in the race for district attorney as well as several county commissioner races.

In the DA race, incumbent Democrat Dave Young leads his Republican challenger, Molly Falk-Jansen, by about eight points, 54 percent to 46 percent. According to early returns, Young has received 44,000 votes to Jansen’s 39,000. 

In the race for commissioner District No. 2, incumbent Democrat Charles “Chaz” Tedesco is clinging to a narrow lead over Republican Sean Ford, a former city councilman and Mayor of Commerce City.As of Wednesday morning, the race is among the county’s tightest, with Tedesco leading by just 321 votes. Tedesco has 59,358 votes compared to 59,037 for Ford. 

Incumbent Democrat Eva Henry is leading Republican challenger Alexander “Skinny” Winkler in the race for District 1, which is centered around Thornton. Henry leads 54 percent to 45 percent as of Wednesday morning. Henry has 65,138 votes compared to 55,922 for Winkler. 

This year’s race to represent District No. 5 has not two candidates familiar to Aurora voters, but three, and is one of the few where an incumbent is trailing. As of Wednesday morning, Republican Jan Pawlowski is behind Democrat Mary Hodge, who is term limited in her state Senate seat and looking to unseat the former Brighton mayor. 

Also tossing her hat in the ring as an independent is Aurora City Councilwoman Renie Peterson, who petitioned her way onto the ballot in July. 

As of Wednesday morning, Hodge is leading Pawlowski while Peterson trails far behind. Hodge has 47 percent of the vote so far, Pawlowski sits in second with 44 percent and Peterson has just 8 percent. Hodge has 56,765 votes, Pawlowski 52,689 and Peterson 10,229.

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ARAPAHOE COUNTY RACES: COUNTY COMMISIONERS AND DISTRICT ATTORNEY

There are two uncontested races in Arapahoe County this year: District Attorney and Commissioner District 1. Voters are choosing commissioner seats in districts 3 and 4.

In Commissioner District 5 — an Aurora-centric district where incumbent Democrat Bill Holen is facing Republican Aurora City Councilman Bob LeGare — Holen holds a sizeable lead. With about 29,000 votes counted as of Wednesday morning, Holen leads 66 percent to 34 percent. Holen has 19,308 compared to just more than 10,000 for LeGare

In District No. 3 Republican Jeff Baker is facing Democrat Janet Cook are vying to replace republican Rod Bockenfeld, who is leaving due to term limits. Baker leads 56 percent to 44 percent with about 53,000 ballots counted.

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SCHOOL DISTRICT BALLOT QUESTIONS: AURORA PUBLIC AND CHERRY CREEK SCHOOLS BOND ISSUES, MILL LEVY

CHERRY CREEK

The combination bond and mill levy override ballot issues in the Cherry Creek School District, issues 3A and 3B, appear to have earned the blessing of Cherry Creek voters, according to Wednesday morning election results tabulated by the Arapahoe County Elections Department.

The budget issue, which appeared on the ballot as issue 3A, was enjoying a comfortable lead of about 9 percentage points, or nearly 10,000 votes, according to the Wednesday morning results.

Issue 3A is slated to provide CCSD with $23.9 million in operating funds and will result in an increase of nearly $100 for homes valued at about $350,000 — the average home price in the district.

Issue 3B, which calls for a $250 million bond, was enjoying a much narrower margin of success as of Wednesday, with about a 1.5 point advantage. The bond issue will not result in a tax increase due to the structuring of the district’s debt.

The bond will help provide additional funding for all schools in CCSD. About $40 million will be earmarked for the construction of a novel career and innovation academy, as district officials call it, which will be located somewhere near the geographic center of the district.

APS

Aurora Public Schools was one of several school districts across the Front Range to have a proposed bond issue approved by a majority of voters on Election Day, according to unofficial results in Adams and Arapahoe counties.

As of Wednesday morning, the APS bond question, which appeared on the ballot as question 3C, was approved by exactly 57 percent of voters in Arapahoe County. In Adams County, which comprises just a small portion of the APS district, voters approved the question by about 9.5 percentage points.

The bond question will provide the district with $300 million to update and overhaul APS’ many crowded and aging schools. The funds will be used to construct a new school serving grades six to 12 in in northwest Aurora, as well as a new P-8 school in east Aurora and the replacement of both Mrachek Middle School and Lyn Knoll Elementary School.

District officials have said the bond issue will increase residential property taxes by about $1.93 per month for every $100,000 of home value. That equals about $23 annually per $100,000 in property value.

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CU REGENT: AT-LARGE SEAT ON THE CU BOARD OF REGENTS

Republican Heidi Ganahl beat Democrat Alice Madden in the race for the available at-large race on the University of Colorado’s Board of Regents, according to the Secretary of State’s election results as of Wednesday morning.

Ganahl, a businesswoman known for founding the pet care enterprise Camp Bow Wow, won by about 5 percent, or 110,000 votes, according to the Secretary of State.

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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 6TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

State Board of Education member Debora Scheffel, the Republican incumbent representing Colorado’s 6th Congressional District, was maintaining an edge on her Democratic challenger Rebecca McClellan as of Wednesday morning, according to the Secretary of State’s tally of election results.

In a narrow race that saw several lead-changes throughout Election Day, Scheffel was leading McClellan by about 3,400 votes, or approximately one percentage point, according to the Secretary of State’s results.

With other incumbent board of education members Joyce Rankin (R-CD3) and Steve Durham (R-CD5) also boasting comfortable leads, the GOP is now expected to retain its majority on the seven-member board.

Scheffel, who has served on the state board since 2010 and acts as the dean of the School of Education of Colorado Christian University, has emerged as a champion of protecting student privacy and data.

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RTD Board Districts 

Incumbent Claudia Folska handily won re-election for her Regional Transportation District E board seat, which spans portions of Arapahoe County and Denver.

Folska is the first blind woman to ever hold public office in Colorado and was elected to RTD’s board in 2012. She faced challenger JM (Maria J) Fay for that seat, who has never held an RTD board position. Folska received 67 percent of the district’s 42,166 votes. 

Former Aurora City Councilman Bob Broom will  be taking over Tom Tobiassen’s District F Seat, where Broom ran unopposed.