June 22, 2026 12:24 PM UTC

Democrats Voting in Higher Numbers in Colorado and Nationally

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• by: Colorado Pols

Few Coloradans still go to a polling place to cast their ballot — about 95% of voters returned their ballots via mail or drop box in 2024 — but you can start voting in-person beginning today. If you’d prefer to vote in person, head over to GoVoteColorado.gov to find a polling place.

You can also find your nearest ballot drop-off location by visiting GoVoteColorado.gov. Taking your completed ballot to a drop box is the best option at this point because the Secretary of State’s office recommends that you don’t put your ballot in the mail after today. Remember: ballots must ARRIVE at your county clerk’s office before 7:00 pm on Tuesday, June 30 in order to be counted; it doesn’t matter if your ballot is postmarked before June 30 if it doesn’t actually arrive before 7:00 pm.

With that out of the way, let’s take a look at the latest ballot return numbers (as of the end of the day on Thursday, June 18)…

Democrats have returned 41% of all ballots in Colorado thus far, compared to 32% for Republicans. This is a trend that is not unique to Colorado, as The Washington Post reports:

Americans are voting this year for Democrats at far higher numbers in primaries and special elections compared with previous contests, suggesting that voters are unusually motivated heading into November.

Democratic anger has been well-documented. But the results from these early elections offer a more detailed look at the staggering scale, and shape, of the enthusiasm gap between the two parties.

Turnout is rising in Democratic primaries even when they aren’t hotly contested and the nominee has little chance of winning in the general election, according to a Washington Post review of 990 races, over three cycles, in 25 states…

…So far this year, people cast 12.6 million ballots in Democratic House primaries compared with 8.6 million in GOP primaries. [Pols emphasis]

This is also holding true in Colorado when it comes to Unaffiliated voters, who can cast a ballot in either the Democratic or Republican Primary. Unaffiliated voters are choosing to vote in the Democratic Primary by a 2-to-1 margin thus far:

Broken out by age, older voters in Colorado continue to lead the way in ballot returns:

Younger voters in Colorado are still holding on to their ballots, which is not unusual in a Primary Election. Coloradans over the age of 65 tend to make up the highest percentage of Primary voters; in the 2024 Primary Election, the turnout rate for voters between the ages of 18-34 was only 8% statewide.

Turnout rates for younger voters in Colorado could end up playing a significant role in the outcome of several races, particularly in two congressional primaries. Democrats Melat Kiros (CO-01) and Manny Rutinel (CO-08) have prioritized targeting younger voters throughout their campaigns but need them to actually return their ballots in order to capitalize on those efforts.