The Democratic challengers in Colorado’s two most competitive congressional races have run fundraising circles around the Republican incumbents, new campaign finance reports show, but outside spending makes up the gap.
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In the 8th Congressional District, which stretches from north metro Denver into Greeley, Democrat Manny Rutinel reported raising nearly $3.7 million to Republican U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans’ $1.2 million in the last three months, according to third-quarter reports filed Thursday night. A joint fundraising committee for Evans also reported bringing in $384,000, while Rutinel’s reported raising $601,000.
The campaign finance filings cover July 1 to Sept. 30, showing fundraising since Colorado’s June 30 primaries. Evans ended the period with $2.7 million in the bank for his candidate committee, plus $54,000 in his joint fundraising committee’s account. Rutinel had about $1.8 million on hand.
But the district, which is among the most competitive in the nation and a potential key to which party controls Congress next year, has also drawn heaps of outside money. Outside super PACs can raise and spend unlimited sums, but cannot directly coordinate with campaigns. Candidates also get favorable ad rates under federal rules.
Another $8 million has been spent either to boost Evans or knock down Rutinel, and $3 million on pro-Rutinel or anti-Evans efforts.
Combined, that makes for about $9.2 million expended last quarter, either by independent committees or through donations to the campaign, to keep the 8th District red — versus about $6.7 million spent to flip it blue.
In the El Paso County-based 5th Congressional District, which is showing signs of being suddenly competitive after decades as a Republican stronghold, Democrat Jessica Killin reported raising $1.7 million in the third quarter, compared to about $373,000 raised by Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Crank.
Crank’s joint fundraising committee reported raising $518,000 more, while Killin’s raised another $352,450. Killin entered the final month or so of the campaign with about $700,000 on hand, while Crank’s campaign had $1 million in cash and his joint fundraising committee had about $352,000.
Outside spending to keep the district Republican has so far topped $2.6 million, with $600,000 going to oppose Crank. That brings the total to about $3.4 million this quarter to keep Crank in the seat, while $2.3 million has been pumped into the district in support of replacing him with Killin.
Boebert outraised again
Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, the Republican who represents the Eastern Plains and Douglas County, continues to be a lightning rod for Democratic money.
Her Democratic challenger, Eileen Laubacher, reported raising nearly $2.7 million over the last three months, bringing her total haul to nearly $13 million over the entire election cycle.
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Boebert, meanwhile, reported raising only $153,000 in that time, and less than $1.2 million this election cycle. Laubacher entered the home stretch of the campaign with more than $3.3 million in the bank, compared to Boebert’s $235,000.
The district is considered safely Republican, however — when it was redrawn earlier this decade, the district by more than 26 percentage points. Boebert, who left the 3rd Congressional District following a series of controversies, won the seat in 2024 by 11 percentage points.
3rd District
Meanwhile, in Boebert’s former domain, the Western Slope-and-Pueblo spanning 3rd Congressional District, Democrat Dwayne Romero raised $709,000 to Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd’s $391,000. Romero ended the quarter with about $262,000, compared to Hurd’s $926,000.
Romero has also faced $788,000 in outside spending against him, while about $495,000 has been spent to benefit Hurd.
Fundraising for Denver seat
In the 1st Congressional District, Democrat Melat Kiros raised $185,000 following her primary victory over longtime U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette to represent the Denver district. That seat is the bluest in the state, and Republican Christy Peterson reported raising just over $5,000 in the third quarter.
Shimon Blau, an unaffiliated candidate who announced his candidacy following DeGette’s loss — and amid controversial statements by Kiros about a deadly attack on pro-Israel demonstrators in Boulder — was able to raise about $160,000 for his longshot campaign.
DeGette, meanwhile, has returned much of the cash she had left over from her failed reelection campaign. She refunded about $122,000 she had raised from a variety of political action committees and another $98,000 she had raised from individuals.
Elsewhere
Colorado’s other three congressional districts — the 2nd, which covers much of the northern Front Range; the 6th, which covers Aurora; and the 7th, which largely covers Lakewood, western metro Denver and some mountain areas — are considered firmly Democratic.
Rep. Joe Neguse, of the 2nd, raised $518,000. Rep. Jason Crow, of the 6th, raised $554,000. Rep. Brittany Pettersen, of the 7th, raised $346,000. The Republican challengers in the 2nd and 6th did not file campaign finance reports by Friday afternoon, and the challenger in the 7th, Timothy Bennett, raised $39,000.
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