November 12, 2018 05:49 PM UTC

It's a 41-Seat Democratic Colorado House Majority

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• by: Colorado Pols

Updating on close Colorado House races that were at least technically undecided at the start of the long holiday weekend, none of which appear to be as of this writing–after Rochelle Galindo’s come-from-behind victory in Greeley’s HD-50 race, the Pueblo Chieftain reports that Bri Buentello in Pueblo County’s HD-47 is pushing her race out of recount territory:

The other race that has been unfinished is the state House District 47 contest but the additional ballots counted Friday lengthened Democrat Brianna Buentello’s lead over Republican Don Bendell.

In that contest, Buentello’s total vote is now 16,204 to Bendell’s 15,898 —a difference of 304 votes.

If Buentello’s lead grows, the race may not require a mandatory recount as was expected. That only happens if the victory margin is a half-percent or less.

With Buentello securing her victory in HD-47, the 41st member of the Colorado House majority will be Rep.-elect Brianna Titone, after Republican opponent Vicki Pyne conceded the HD-27 race on Saturday–Colorado Public Radio:

Brianna Titone declared herself the winner of the race to represent House District 27 in Arvada on Friday. Her opponent, Republican Vicki Pyne, conceded on Saturday.

Titone became Colorado’s first transgender lawmaker, and one of the first nationwide.

Titone said she didn’t focus on her gender identity while campaigning. But in a political climate with a federal administration that has sought to roll back protections for transgender people, Titone does acknowledge that her win is meaningful.

These three late Democratic House wins put the finishing touches on an historic 2018 election for Colorado Democrats, leaving them in total control of the state’s executive and legislative branches. These will all be competitive races in two years, of course, but the strength of their wins positions them all as strong incumbents.

It’s a very big deal, and it’s (almost) official.