2020 Presidential Elections State-by-State Guide: Having no prior wins in Colorado could work to Trump's advantage
State
COLORADO
Primary dates
March 17, 2020 (Tuesday)
Type: Semi-closed
Democratic delegates: 80 (67 pledged, 13 super)
Republican delegates: 37
Governor
Jared Polis (Democratic)
Senators
Michael Bennet (D) & Cory Gardner (R)
Representative: 7
Four Democrats: Diana DeGette (1st District), Joe Neguse (2nd District), Jason Crow (6th District), Ed Pedmutter (7th District)
Three Republicans: Scott Tipton (3rd District), Ken Buck (4th District), Dough Lamborn (5th District).
Electoral college votes: 9
Hillary Clinton won all of them in 2016
How Colorado has voted in the past
Having gained statehood in 1876, Colorado voted primarily for the GOP between 1920 and 2004. However, it has sided with the Democrats in the last three elections, 2008, 2012 and 2016, with Hillary winning the last by 48.2 to 43.3 percent.
That election even witnessed one of Colorado’s electors attempting to vote for Bernie Sanders though that was eventually disallowed and the elector was replaced. Colorado is surrounded by deep red states (except for New Mexico) and is one of the battleground states in western US.
Colorado a Democratic stronghold
The Republicans want to believe that Colorado is a purple state but the state’s younger, richer and more liberal voters arriving there from California could be a hindrance to that way of thought.
Colorado though has a bigger white population than the US as a whole (68 percent to 61 percent) but it is also home to a higher number of college students (39 percent compared to the national figure of 30 percent).
The Hispanic population at 22 percent is also four points higher than the national average. And all these factors confirm that the state is a Democratic bastion at the moment.
Colorado and presidential election 2020
Colorado is America’s eighth-largest and 21st most populous state but politically, it doesn’t have as big a significance as California, Texas or Michigan.
In the Democratic camp, Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have hired campaign directors in Colorado while a number of his party rivals even haven’t set their foot on the Centennial State’s soil.
There is very little chance of Colorado going red in this election and that has made it a foregone conclusion all the more. Political observers will be more interested to see whether Colorado keeps its Republican senator Gardner, one of the most vulnerable ones running for re-election.
The Democrats are eyeing to regain control of the Senate to deal with Trump more effectively and Colorado is one state which is under their scanner.
Trump has not said much about the state either, except that he was also building a wall on its border (even though it doesn’t have fences with Mexico) but his aides are optimistic that he will bag it next year.
The top Democratic Party candidates seeking nomination for the presidential election are not really ignoring Colorado because of the unaffiliated voters that it is allowing for the first time this year.
Ahead of the Super Tuesday, Bernie Sanders was leading in Colorado and is likely to bag the state he had won in the 2016 caucuses as well. A non-binding caucus was held on the GOP with Ted Cruz bagging the majority of the delegates.