In the 2023 City of Boulder election, younger voters appear to have helped Mayor Aaron Brockett secure a narrow win over Councilmember Bob Yates in the city’s first direct election of mayor, according to an analysis of the election results.
The average age of voters in districts that supported Brockett was 43, compared to 50 in districts that supported Yates. The average age of active registered voters across the City of Boulder is 46, according to county voter registration records.
Another candidate for city mayor, Councilmember Nicole Speer, was backed by younger-than-average voters. Brockett earned most of Speers’ second-choice votes under the instant runoff voting method that was used for the first time this year.
The Boulder County Clerk and Recorder this week released the official results from the 2023 election. Boulder Reporting Lab analyzed the precinct-level results and voter registration records to provide a closer look at how the election played out in neighborhoods and voting districts across the city. Here are some other key takeaways.
Turnout in student neighborhoods was low, but higher than in 2021
Voter turnout across Boulder County was 52.7% this year, according to the Boulder County Clerk and Recorder. Turnout in the City of Boulder was slightly less. Turnout in odd-year elections is typically lower than in even-year elections, when voters decide state and federal races, including for U.S. president.
In neighborhoods where students typically live — such as Goss-Grove, University Hill and Baseline Sub — voter turnout ranged from about 20% to 33%. Despite being relatively low, the turnout in these districts appears to be higher than it was in 2021, Boulder’s last odd-year election, when some precincts on University Hill had single-digit turnout.
Support for mayoral candidates varied widely by neighborhood
In the first voting round, Brockett’s strongest support came from the Holiday neighborhood, where he lives.
In the second round, he gained wide margins over Yates in Goss-Grove and Baseline Sub, both of which are near CU Boulder’s campus. He also had strong support from the Glenwood Grove neighborhood, which has the Orchard Grove mobile home community near its center.
All those districts had below-average voter turnout. One district in Goss-Grove, for instance, had 32% turnout.
Speer received her strongest support in neighborhoods near the university, such as Goss-Grove and Baseline Sub. She also earned relatively high support in Tantra Park, where she lives.
Yates’ strongest support came from Chautauqua, which is one of the wealthiest areas of the city, according to the U.S. Census. In one precinct in this neighborhood, Yates bested Brockett by about 44 percentage points.
Yates also had solid support in Newlands as well as Melody Heights, where he lives. He won these precincts with more than 60% of the vote. These districts also had above-average turnout. One voting district in Melody Heights had the highest turnout of any district, with 68% of active registered voters casting ballots.
City ballot measures had broad support
Safe Zones 4 Kids, the ballot measure concerning homeless encampments, passed with 61% support and was backed by just about every voting district in the city. It received its strongest support — 73% — from the Chautauqua neighborhood. The only districts where it was not supported by a majority were in Baseline Sub, Goss-Grove, Martin Acres, Tantra Park and Glenwood Grove.
Ballot Issue 2A, which will reauthorize a sales tax and dedicate half the revenue to arts and culture programs, passed in every voting district across the city. It received its highest support, as much as 83%, in a district in the Goss-Grove neighborhood.
Boulder City Council precinct-level results highlight close race for final seat
Three people have officially won seats on the nine-member Boulder City Council: Councilmember Tara Winer, Tina Marquis, a former president of the Boulder Valley School District Board of Education, and Taishya Adams, a former commissioner to Colorado Parks and Wildlife and inaugural member of the city’s Police Oversight Panel.
In the race for the fourth seat, Ryan Schuchard appears to have won by just 47 votes over Terri Brncic, according to the official 2023 election results posted this week. The margin was small enough to trigger an automatic recount, which is scheduled for Dec. 5.
Schuchard earned his strongest support in the Baseline Sub, Glenwood Grove, Goss-Grove, Martin Acres and Tantra Park neighborhoods. Brncic earned her highest support in neighborhoods including Chautauqua, Mapleton Hill and in Newlands, where she lives.
The top vote-getters in the council election also won in nearly every individual district, although there were exceptions. Silas Atkins, a paraeducator at Manhattan Middle School who came in eighth overall out of the 10 candidates, came in fourth in a district in Goss-Grove.