LARKSPUR — Colorado’s Republican primary for governor was too close to call Tuesday night, with state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer holding a slight lead over ministry leader Victor Marx in the race that will determine who gets a chance to become the state’s first Republican leader in 20 years.
Kirkmeyer had 41% of the vote to Marx’s 39% at 10:30 p.m. In third place was state Rep. Scott Bottoms of Colorado Springs, with 20% of the vote.
Whoever ultimately wins the primary will face Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser in November. Republicans haven’t won a statewide race in Colorado since 2016, and the last GOP candidate for governor lost by nearly 20 percentage points in 2022.
Bill Owens was Colorado’s last Republican governor, serving from 1999 to 2007.
Whoever wins the governor’s race in November will replace term-limited Gov. Jared Polis early next year.
Kirkmeyer was the establishment favorite to win the Republican primary, winning endorsements from Owens, U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans and The Gazette newspaper in Colorado Springs. But she struggled to fundraise and match Marx’s momentum.
Marx, a Marine veteran and ministry leader who lives just north of Colorado Springs, used his national social media following and extraordinary, albeit mostly unprovable, life story to fuel his campaign.
In the home stretch, Kirkmeyer worked to raise questions about Marx’s fitness to be governor. Those intensified after he refused to answer a question from 9News anchor Kyle Clark about how many people he has killed. That moment went viral and was panned on late-night TV.
Kirkmeyer, 67, contrasted her experience in the state legislature, as a Weld County commissioner and in Owens’ administration with Marx’s status as a political newcomer.
Marx, a 60-year-old unconventional, first-time candidate, pitched voters more on his leadership style than his concrete plans for the state. Kirkmeyer said she had both.
Speaking to reporters Tuesday night at his campaign’s watch party in Larkspur, Marx said he was “humbled and excited” that the race was so close.
“This is exciting, a little more exciting than I thought it would be, but this is Colorado politics,” he said.
Marx said he would accept the election results regardless of the outcome and support any Republican candidate who wins, despite other candidates saying they would not support his campaign.
“The goal is to take Colorado back, and I am for Colorado,” he said.
Marx said he felt if Bottoms had dropped out, he would have won by a “huge margin.”