With all races called, Colorado voters say ‘yes’ to 7 of 14 ballot measures

Colorado voters approved half of the 14 ballot measures up for consideration this year, saying ‘yes’ to policies like more funding for public education and restrictions on transgender students in school sports, but rejecting the expanded right to use natural gas and forced cooperation between immigration officials and local governments.

It tied the record for highest number of questions put to voters in the last five decades. Nearly all were citizen-led initiatives that garnered enough petition signatures to make it onto the ballot.

A handful of this year’s measures were brought by Advance Colorado, a conservative “dark money” group that doesn’t disclose its donors. Republicans have increasingly relied on ballot measures to promote policy ideas in the state, as their influence in statewide offices and at the state Legislature dwindles under Democratic control.

Just one of those Advance Colorado measures — to increase criminal penalties for possessing and selling fentanyl — passed.

A right-leaning group, Protect Kids Colorado, pushed three ballot measures this year and found universal success, despite the so-called “blue tsunami” that washed over the state. The group was founded by a parent and anti-trans activist from Larimer County, and this is the first election cycle it ran propositions.

Constitutional amendments require 55% of the vote to pass, while statutory measures need a simple majority.

Amendment 81

Amendment 81 lost with 55.3% of the vote against it. The measure was backed mainly by Advance Colorado. It would have expanded Colorado’s local law enforcement’s role in immigration enforcement and require local police to notify U.S. Department of Homeland Security if they charge someone known to be “not lawfully present” in the country, or if “the status of the person’s lawful presence is unknown” and the person has a previous violent criminal conviction or felony conviction.

Colorado’s Democratic-led Legislature has passed a handful of laws limiting state and local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

The amendment was opposed by a coalition of district attorneys in the state.

“Amendment 81 would have reversed decades of policy efforts spearheaded by immigrant rights advocates across our state,” Henry Sandman, co-executive director of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, said in a statement after its defeat. “We are grateful that Colorado voters stood with immigrant communities, defended the fundamental principle of innocence until proven guilty, and voted to limit ICE collaboration in our state.”

Amendment 82

Amendment 82 failed with 53.7% of voters against it. It would have enshrined the right to buy and sell natural gas in the state’s constitution, and it came amid growing state policies that limit the use of natural gas. Phasing out natural gas aligns with Colorado’s climate goals, and some cities like Denver have passed ordinances requiring new commercial buildings to use electric space and water heating.

This was an Advance Colorado ballot measure.

Amendment 83

Amendment 83 had 54.9% of voters in opposition. It proposed a constitutional right to hunt and fish in the state. Proponents said it would protect hunting from wildlife advocacy efforts, while opponents worried the language could undo bans against such methods as steel leghold traps and luring bears. The amendment was championed by the out-of-state organization International Order of T. Roosevelt in Wisconsin.

The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission is in charge of regulating hunting in the state. It has 11 members appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate.

Twenty-four states have a similar constitutional amendment, with Florida voters most recently approving the language in 2024. The amendment had the most support in rural and Western Slope counties, according to unofficial results.

Amendment 84

Amendment 84 lost with 63.4% of voters against it. Under the amendment, Colorado voters would have needed to write the last four digits of their Social Security number, Colorado driver’s license or identification card on their mail-in ballot envelopes under the constitutional amendment.

It was backed by the Coalition for American Prosperity and Growth, and supporters said it would encourage election security by making sure every ballot belongs to the right voter.

But groups including the League of Women Voters and Colorado Common Cause said it wasn’t necessary for voter verification, and people could be wary of having their ID numbers so visible.

Amendment 85

Amendment 85 failed even though more people voted for it, as it missed the 55% threshold for amendments by about 4 percentage points. It sought to make Colorado’s ballots easier to read by requiring questions to be written at an eighth-grade reading level. It was put on the ballot by Advance Colorado, and supporters said it would increase understanding in elections.

The amendment did not define what an eighth-grade reading level actually means, so stakeholders worried that vagueness would make it difficult to actually implement. Others worried it could lead to misleading or intentionally evasive ballot language.

“Plain language should help people understand what they’re voting on,” Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib said in a statement. “It shouldn’t become a reason to leave out who pays more, who pays less or what a proposal means for their local school.”

Amendment 86

Amendment 86 had a 53.1% vote against it. It was a response to the rush of states that redrew their congressional district lines this year to give one political party an advantage. The amendment would have required any mid-decade redistricting to be approved by the state’s independent redistricting commission and the Colorado Supreme Court. Redistricting typically happens the year following a census.

Earlier this year, a Democratic-aligned group tried to get a ballot measure approved to allow mid-decade gerrymandering, but a court blocked it. Advance Colorado backed Amendment 86 in response to that attempt.

Amendment 87

Amendment 87 passed with 51.6% of the vote — bypassing the 55% requirement for amendments because it repeals a provision in the constitution versus adding one. It will amend the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights to create graduated income tax rates, so the rate increases with income levels. Individuals and companies making more than $500,000 per year will see their income tax rate rise, maxing out at 8.4% for people making over $1 million, while those making less will see it drop. A fiscal analysis by nonpartisan state legislative staff estimated that the measure would raise $2 billion in additional revenue for the state by the 2027-28 fiscal year. It was backed by Protecting Colorado’s Future, a coalition of progressive and liberal advocacy groups.

“This is a huge day for Colorado,” Chris deGruy Kennedy, president of the liberal Bell Policy Center, said after the win. “It’s a signal by voters that we are fundamentally changing the direction of how we are going to make sure Colorado’s economy supports every hardworking person, every older adult, every child and everyone in between.”

The amendment faced a last-minute court challenge by a person who claimed paid signature gatherers did not properly register with the state. Denver District Court and the Colorado Supreme Court both decided it should stay on the ballot.

Proposition NN

Proposition NN passed with 57% of the vote, one of the largest margins of victory for this year’s ballot measures. It asked voters to raise the limit the state can keep under TABOR and send that money to public K-12 education. It was the only ballot measure referred to voters by the state Legislature. The Colorado Education Association led the campaign for Proposition NN and argued that while it wouldn’t fully close the state’s education funding gap, it would get spending closer to the true cost of educating students today.

Conservatives were against the proposition and saw it as an attack on TABOR.

Proposition 132

Proposition 132 passed with 52.6% of the vote. It will make it a felony to manufacture, distribute or sell a list of synthetic opiates, including fentanyl, and imposed an eight-year mandatory minimum sentence. That will be a significant increase of current criminal penalties. It will also remove a provision in state law that gives immunity to felony prosecution for those offenses to people who report an overdose to authorities.

It was backed by Advance Colorado and other conservative activists and politicians, including Republican District Attorney George Brauchler. A coalition with groups like ACLU of Colorado, Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition and the Signal Behavioral Health Network were opposed to the proposition.

Proposition 133

People convicted of child sex trafficking will receive a life sentence without parole under Proposition 133, which passed with 62.1% of the vote. Denver and Boulder were the only counties to vote against it. Child sex trafficking is already a felony in Colorado.

The proposition also expands the definition of human trafficking of a minor for sexual servitude to include trading anything of monetary value to buy or sell sexual activity with a minor.

The measure was backed by Protect Kids Colorado. Supporters saw the stronger penalty as a deterrent. Opponents, such as the Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault and the Colorado Organization for Victim Assistance, said the measure could inadvertently imprison victims who can be pressured into helping their own traffickers target more people.

Erin Lee, the founder and leader of PKC, celebrated the success of all three propositions on social media, calling it a “true David vs. Goliath battle” in a Facebook post.

Proposition 134

Proposition 134 passed with 52.2% of the vote. Protect Kids Colorado also backed this ballot measure to require student athletes to play on sports teams that correspond to their sex assigned at birth, so a transgender girl will be excluded from playing on a girls sports team. Schools will need to adopt a policy that classifies teams as male, female or co-ed. Transgender students will be able to play on co-ed teams.

There are 27 states that ban trans girls from competing in girls sports.

But Colorado is generally considered one of the most trans-friendly states. Groups like One Colorado, the Bread and Roses Legal Center and Rocky Mountain Equality campaigned against the proposition.

“While Colorado families struggle with the rising costs of groceries, rent and healthcare, politicians spent their time targeting transgender young people,” reads part of a social media post from One Colorado posted after Election Day. “Restricting healthcare and excluding trans kids from school sports won’t make life more affordable, our schools stronger or our communities safer. Trans kids were made into political targets.”

Proposition 135

Proposition 135 passed with 51.9% of the vote. The third measure backed by Protect Kids Colorado bans surgeries on minors “for the purpose of altering biological sex characteristics.” It defines those surgeries as treatment related to the child’s “perception” of sex or gender.

Those surgeries are rare for transgender youth in Colorado and across the country and Children’s Hospital Colorado and UCHealth, two major providers of gender-affirming care in the state, have never performed surgeries for transgender minors. It is more common for those patients to undergo gender-affirming care like puberty blockers, counseling and social transition.

Proposition 136

Proposition 136 lost with nearly 53% of voters against it. It was Advance Colorado’s answer to Amendment 87, the graduated income tax measure. It would have capped the state’s income tax at the current 4.4%. It was losing with 52.7% of votes against it as of Wednesday afternoon.

Proposition 137

Proposition 137 passed with 51.9% of voters in favor of it. It will divert some existing sales tax revenue from sporting goods to wildlife mitigation and land protection. The measure will reduce taxpayer refunds in some years.

“Prop 137 is a historic investment in the future of our state,” Carlos Fernández, Colorado state director for The Nature Conservancy, said in a statement “By voting to restore our forests, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires and protect the rivers and streams we all depend on, Coloradans have taken an important, proactive step toward enabling both people and nature to thrive for generations to come.”