Tag Archives: Rep. Gabe Evans

CO-8 Freshman Rep. Gabe Evans
Now Faces Nine Challengers

By Jim Ellis — Tuesday, July 22, 2025

House

Colorado Rep. Gabe Evans (R)

In a Colorado post-redistricting congressional seat designed to revert between the parties, a ninth Democrat, venture capitalist and Marine Corps veteran Evan Munsing, announced his 2026 candidacy late last week.

The large Democratic field is vying to challenge freshman Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Fort Lupton). The group includes former Congresswoman Yadira Caraveo, State Treasurer David Young, and state Reps. Manny Rutinel (D-Commerce City) and Shannon Bird (D-Westminster), among the nine contenders to date.

One of the legislators, state Rep. Rutinel, has already raised $1.6 million with over $800,000 cash-on-hand. Rep. Evans has also raised $1.6 million for his re-election campaign and has a more substantial $1.5 million in his campaign coffers. In contrast, Caraveo, who lost to Evans in November, raised only $214,000 since her 2026 announcement of candidacy.

State Rep. Bird has raised a substantial amount, and also more than the former incumbent. Bird recorded campaign receipts of $446,559 through the June 30 campaign finance 2nd Quarter deadline and holds just under $374,000 in her campaign account. Lagging behind is State Treasurer Young who attracted less than $75,000.

Colorado, as previously reported many times, redistricted in 2021 through a citizens’ commission. The congressional panel drew the state’s newly awarded 8th District to be one that would reflect the electorate’s twists and turns as the political climate evolves throughout the ensuing decade. The Dave’s Redistricting App statisticians calculate the CO-8 partisan lean at 48.3D – 47.0R, and in its two election cycles the district has performed largely as intended.

In November, President Trump carried CO-8 with a tight 49.6 – 47.8 percent spread. Four years earlier, however, President Biden also posted a close win in the new district, 50.8 – 46.3 percent. That year, Caraveo, then a state Representative, was elected as the district’s first US Representative with a 48.4 – 47.7 percent victory over Republican state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer. In 2024, Evans, himself then a state Representative, unseated Caraveo with again a similarly close margin, this time, 48.9 – 48.2 percent.

The district became one of the focal points in the 2024 battle for the House majority, and it will undoubtedly again be a key factor in which party controls the chamber come January of 2027.

The 8th District lies just north and east of Denver, stretching from the metro bedroom communities of Commerce City, Thornton, and Westminster northward 50-plus miles to the city of Greeley, a municipality with a population of just under 100,000 in Weld County. The district holds almost all of Adams County, with a portion of Weld, and a sliver of Larimer counties.

Though Caraveo, a physician, represented the district in its initial term, her return so far this year has been marred with controversy. A news story that she has relatively recently attempted suicide is a large reason why campaign is off to a slow start and her fundraising poor.

Still, she has high name identification and in a plurality system with a crowded field, she cannot be counted out. At the beginning of this 8th District nomination campaign, the leaders appear to be the two state Reps., Rutinel and Bird.

Regardless of who wins this hotly contested Democratic primary, Rep. Evans will have his hands full in a first attempt to hold this politically marginal district, a seat that has proven difficult for either party to establish a lasting foothold.

Before coming to Congress, Rep. Evans served one term in the Colorado House of Representatives. He has a military service record that includes active duty in the US Army and has logged time in both the Colorado and Virginia National Guard. He was also a policeman for the city of Arvada, Colorado.

Though the Democratic candidates are raising substantial early funds, most of their initial monies will be used to win the nomination. Because this race will be a top national target, financing for the general election both through individual contributions to the candidates’ committees and outside spending from both parties’ allies will be extraordinarily high. In the 2024 race, the combined candidate and outside spending aggregate figure exceeded $40 million. It is probable the financial totals will be even higher in 2026.

Rep. Evans will continue to raise and bank campaign funds as the Democrats engage in what promises to be an intense fight for the party nomination. It’s possible the field will thin as the campaign progresses, however. Some of the contenders will be forced to drop their bid after the party endorsing convention if they fail to make the ballot through delegate votes and don’t choose the signature petition route. The Democratic endorsing assembly will likely be held in late April. The Colorado primary is scheduled for June 30, 2026.

Expect to read much more about this race as the campaign unfolds throughout the bulk of the current election cycle.

Colorado Action

By Jim Ellis — Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Governor

Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet (D)

Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet (D) / Photo by Gage Skidmore, Flickr

US Sen. Michael Bennet (D), as expected, formally announced his intention to run for Governor next year. Since he was re-elected to a six-year term in 2022, he does not have to risk his Senate seat to run for Governor. Should he be elected, Sen. Bennet would then appoint his own successor.

While his presence in the Governor’s race dissuaded US Reps. Joe Neguse (D-Lafayette/Boulder) and Jason Crow (D-Aurora) from running statewide (they both have endorsed Sen. Bennet), Attorney General Phil Reiser (D), who was the first to announce for Governor, is committed to remaining in the race. He says that Bennet should remain in the Senate at the very time more Democratic voices are needed in Washington.

Another potential gubernatorial candidate has decided to run for a different office. Secretary of State Jena Griswold (D), who was expected to become a gubernatorial candidate, instead announced for Attorney General largely in anticipation of Bennet running for Governor. Conversely, former Attorney General, US Senator, US Interior Secretary, and US Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar (D) said he is still interested in a potential Governor’s bid, noting that he has previously held both Bennet’s and Reiser’s current positions.

The Democratic nomination process looks to be the major battle to replace term-limited Gov. Jared Polis (D). In Colorado, the parties hold a nominating assembly prior to the statewide primary election. Candidates can qualify for the primary ballot by obtaining 30 percent of the convention delegates’ support, or they can petition onto the ballot through a signature gathering process.

Candidates can both participate in the assembly and submit petitions. It will be interesting to see if any of the contenders adhere only to the convention process, i.e., meaning they will end their campaigns if they don’t obtain the required number of delegate votes to advance into the general election. This does happen, but most who participate in the assembly also submit petitions unless they are fully confident of obtaining the necessary delegate votes.

With Colorado now basically cemented as a Democratic state, the eventual GOP nominee has much work to do just to prove he or she will be a viable candidate in the general election.

Announced Republican gubernatorial contenders are state Sen. Mark Baisley (R-Salida), state Rep. Scott Bottoms (R-Colorado Springs), and Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell. Others are expected to join.

The candidate filing deadline and nominating assembly will both occur next April. The statewide primary will likely be set for June 24, 2026.

CO-8

Though Democratic state Rep. Manny Rutinel (D-Commerce City) has already raised over $1 million in his early campaign to challenge 8th District freshman US Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Ft. Lupton), former Congresswoman Yadira Caraveo (D), who lost to Evans in November, is indicating she will return for a comeback.

Though Rutinel has already proven to be a strong fundraiser, he will now have to spend a great deal of that money just to win the party nomination. Therefore, the person benefiting the most from a Caraveo-Rutinel primary confrontation will be Rep. Evans.

It will be very interesting to see if either Caraveo or Rutinel would pledge not to force a primary if one or the other fails to gain the requisite delegate support from the nominating assembly to secure an election ballot line. If so, the eventual nominee would be able to avoid a potentially divisive and expensive primary. At the outset, it appears likely that both candidates would attract at least 30 percent of the assembly delegates’ support, the minimum number necessary to advance.

The 8th District lies north and east of Denver and contains the Greeley, Thurston, and Westminster communities. It was designed as a competitive seat and has certainly performed in such a manner.

The district’s first two election victors, Caraveo and Evans, won the seat with 48 and 49 percent of the vote, respectively. The CO-8 campaign will again become one of the most hotly contested races of the national US House election cycle and a major factor toward determining the next partisan majority.