Boulder’s 2026 election results are nearly final. Here’s who won and which local ballot measures passed or failed.
Three Boulder City Council incumbents won reelection: Mayor Pro Tem Tara Winer and Councilmembers Tina Marquis and Ryan Schuchard. Two other candidates won seats: Jill Grano, a former councilmember and real estate agent, and Sam Fuqua, a former Boulder Valley school board president and radio journalist.
Mayor Aaron Brockett won reelection, defeating entrepreneur and political newcomer Aquiles La Grave, who finished second, in the city’s second direct mayoral election, which uses ranked-choice voting.
The winners will serve alongside Councilmembers Matt Benjamin, Rob Kaplan and Nicole Speer, who weren’t up for election this year, on the nine-member council. The new council will be sworn in on Dec. 3.
This was Boulder’s first city council election held in an even-numbered year, a change voters approved to boost turnout in city races. Boulder County turnout appears to have topped 75%, according to ballot return data. That’s a jump from about 51% in 2025, the last city council election, but below the 84% turnout in the 2024 presidential election.
This council will also be the first to benefit from a voter-approved pay raise. A 2024 ballot measure tied councilmembers’ salaries to 40% of the area median income and the mayor’s salary to 50%. The change was meant to make it possible for people with a wider range of incomes to serve.
The council’s average age will drop slightly, from 56 to 54. The council will also have no members of color. Councilmember Taishya Adams, the council’s only Black member, ran for mayor instead of seeking reelection and lost.
The Boulder Progressives widened their majority, with seven of the nine councilmembers having received the group’s endorsement. But those endorsements haven’t translated into a consistent voting bloc.
What passed, and failed, on the ballot
Issue 2K, the most closely watched measure on the local ballot, failed, with 56% of voters opposing it, according to the latest unofficial results. It would have allowed the city to borrow up to $400 million to repair and replace aging facilities.
The Boulder City Council unanimously referred the bond to the ballot, but it split the field of council candidates. No campaign spent money promoting the measure, while an opposition campaign backed by some of Boulder’s largest property owners, including Bill Reynolds and Tebo Properties, spent more than $20,000 to defeat it, according to city campaign finance records.
“What this result means is that we have some difficult short- and longer-term decisions to make,” City Manager Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde said in a statement. “We’re committed to engaging transparently and collaboratively to develop a path forward.”
Three other city measures passed. Question 2M, which changes how the city calculates its debt limit, passed with 54%. Issue 2J, a tax on homes that sit vacant most of the year, passed with 58%. Question 2L, which adds collective bargaining rights for full-time firefighters to the city charter, passed with 83%.
In Boulder County, Issue 1A, a property tax increase to pay for child care, passed with 58%. Question 200, which expands the Board of County Commissioners from three members to five, passed with 66%. On Question 201, voters appear to have narrowly chosen a system in which three commissioners are elected by district and two countywide (52%), rather than electing all five by district (48%).
A measure allowing Niwot to incorporate as a town failed, with 74% opposed. Companion measures that would have allowed the new town to levy taxes also failed.
Ballot Issue 7A, a sales tax to help pay for Front Range Passenger Rail service, known as the Colorado Connector, or CoCo, passed with 56% support, according to unofficial results. The train’s northern segment from Denver to Fort Collins, with a stop in Boulder, is expected to begin service in 2029.
County and other races
Transit advocate Jack Rosenthal won a competitive race to represent Boulder and much of western Boulder County on the Regional Transportation District (RTD) board, defeating Audrey DeBarros, the longtime executive director of Commuting Solutions. The race drew unusual attention as RTD faces budget shortfalls, service cuts and plans for passenger rail to Boulder.
Former state Rep. Edie Hooton won a seat on the University of Colorado Board of Regents, representing the 2nd Congressional District, which includes Boulder. Her victory followed a closely contested three-way Democratic primary in June.
Boulder County will also have a new treasurer. Former Boulder City Councilmember Rachel Friend won the seat after defeating Superior Town Councilmember Jenn Kaaoush in the Democratic primary. County Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann won reelection to her District 3 seat. Both were unopposed in the general election.
U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse won a fifth term representing Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District.
Democrats held every state legislative seat representing Boulder County and flipped a Republican-held seat.
In House District 19, one of the state’s most competitive legislative seats, Democrat Jillaire McMillan, co-founder of a marine robotics company, defeated Republican Rep. Dan Woog with 58% of the vote. McMillan, who was appointed to the seat in 2024, narrowly lost it to Woog that same year. The district spans parts of Boulder and Weld counties.
In Senate District 15, Democratic Sen. Janice Marchman of Loveland defeated Republican Rob Woodward, also of Loveland. In Senate District 17, Democratic Sen. Katie Wallace of Longmont defeated Republican Pat Miller.
Democratic Reps. Kyle Brown, Lesley Smith, Junie Joseph and Karen McCormick also won reelection in less competitive seats. Joseph and McCormick were unopposed.
For results from federal and statewide races, along with Colorado’s propositions and constitutional amendments, visit BRL’s election results tracker.
