Good morning, Boulder. The county released its near-final election results last night. Left to be counted are ballots from members of the military, citizens overseas and voters who need to “cure” their rejected ballots. We’re reporting on key City of Boulder and Boulder County issues and races for state legislature below.
A big unknown after early ballot counting was how the measure to create a library district would fare. It passed, with 53% in favor. The measure to move Boulder’s municipal elections to even years passed. The measure to undo the annexation agreement between the city and CU to develop the CU South property failed. The contest for the newly redistricted state Senate District 15 seat remains very close — the closest at this point in Boulder County races. Turnout of the county’s active registered voters was at 75%. That compares to 82% in the 2018 midterms. Stay tuned: We’ll have further coverage and analysis later this week, and in the weeks and months to come. Thanks, as always, for reading.
— the BRL team
City of Boulder measures
- Ballot Measure 2F: Failed, 46% in favor (repeals CU South annexation)
- Ballot Measure 2E: Passed, 63% in favor (moves city’s elections from odd years to even years to coincide with state and federal elections, starting in 2026)
- Ballot Measure 6C: Passed, 53% in favor (creates a new library district across the City of Boulder and much of Boulder County)
- Ballot Measure 2A: Passed, 70% in favor (creates a new tax on utility bills to pay for climate change resilience and mitigation projects)
- Ballot Measure 5A: Passed, 70% in favor (allows BVSD to borrow up to $350 million to pay for “critical needs”)
- Ballot Measure 2D: Passed, 83% in favor (prevents candidates running for mayor in 2023 from also running for city council)
- Ballot Measure 2C: Passed, 68% in favor (helps cut the library out of city government in library district formation)
- Ballot Measure 2B: Passed, 68% in favor (allows the City of Boulder to take on debt to implement climate-related programs)
Boulder County measures
- County Measure 1A: Passed, 72% in favor (a wildfire mitigation sale tax)
- County Measure 1B: Passed, 68% in favor (a tax to support emergency response programs, including volunteer organizations, such as the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group)
- County Measure 1C: Passed, 81% in favor (extends a transportation tax aimed in part at supporting people who walk, bike or take the bus)
State House races
- House District 49: Democratic Rep. Judy Amabile won over Republican challenger Katie Lehr, 64% to 34%. (Daniel Lutz, the Libertarian candidate, received about 2.5% of the vote.)
- House District 10: Boulder City Councilmember Junie Joseph, a Democrat, won over Republican William DeOreo, 88% to 12%.
- House District 11: Democratic Rep. Karen McCormick won over Republican challenger Tara Menza, 70% to 30%.
- House District 12: Democratic Rep. Tracey Bernett won over Republican challenger Anya Kirvan, 77% to 23%.
- House District 19: Democrat Jennifer Lea Parenti won over Republican incumbent Dan Woog, 50% to 47%. (Libertarian candidate Joe Johnson received about 3% of the vote.)
State Senate races
Reminder: This year marks the first election since the Colorado Independent Redistricting Commission redrew political maps across the state and broke up Boulder County’s state senate districts. The redrawn Senate District 15 includes almost all of Larimer County, rural Berthoud, Estes Park, Loveland, Red Feather Lakes, Wellington and much of rural Boulder County, including Lyons, Nederland and Ward.
- Senate District 15: Democrat Janice Marchman from Loveland is leading incumbent Republican Sen. Rob Woodward from Loveland, 50.5% to 49.5%.
Boulder County races
- Boulder County Commissioner District 3: Louisville Mayor Ashley Stolzmann won over Libertarian candidate Bo Shaffer, 80% to 20%.
- Boulder County Sheriff: Curtis Johnson, who faced no challengers, is the next Boulder County sheriff. He will replace Sheriff Joe Pelle, who was first elected in 2003.
Boulder County 2022 election results: Even-year elections to pass, CU South annexation repeal poised to fail
By John Herrick
Update: This story was updated at 10 p.m. on Nov. 14, with the last set of results (with the exception of members of the military, citizens overseas and voters who need to “cure” their rejected ballots). The final results will be released end of day on Nov. 17.
In wake of yet another CU South referendum, uncertainty lingers
By John Herrick
Boulder voters rejected a ballot measure to repeal the city’s CU South annexation agreement with the University of Colorado, with 54% voting against Ballot Measure 2F. For now, the vote clears a major hurdle for the development. But the road ahead could still be a challenging one — most immediately for the flood project.
Boulder voters approve move to even-year city council elections. Here’s what that means.
By John Herrick
The result is expected to boost voter turnout and could increase the odds of passing more progressive policies around housing density and transportation.