House Democrats want to win every Colorado congressional seat this year

The campaign arm for Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives wants to flip all of Colorado’s Republican-held seats in 2026.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, or DCCC, announced Wednesday that it added Colorado’s 3rd and 4th congressional districts to its list of “districts in play.” That means all four Colorado districts represented by Republicans are high priority races for the DCCC as it looks to regain control of Congress. 

Colorado’s 5th and 8th districts have already been high priorities for the DCCC since earlier in the election cycle. The 3rd District has seen close races between Republican and Democratic candidates in recent years. But the 4th District, which includes the Eastern Plains and most of Douglas County, is Colorado’s most conservative district. 

The Cook Political Report says both districts are solidly Republican, while the 5th is likely Republican and the 8th is a toss-up. Consistent over-performance by Democrats in special elections this cycle prove there is a path to victory in all of Colorado’s districts, according to the DCCC. 

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert of Windsor won the 4th District with about 54% of the vote in 2024 after moving across the state from the 3rd District, where she nearly lost her seat to Democratic candidate Adam Frisch. 

“Lauren Boebert is more interested in her own political self-promotion and chasing national attention than actually delivering for Colorado families,” U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene, a Washington Democrat who chairs the DCCC, said in a statement. “Coloradans want a representative focused on lowering costs, not someone who treats public service like a self-serving media tour. That’s why they’ll fire Boebert this November.”

Retired Navy rear admiral and former National Security Council official Eileen Laubacher won the Democratic nomination in the 4th District this year and has heavily outraised Boebert. Laubacher raised more than $10 million since launching her campaign in May 2025. That’s more than seven times Boebert’s haul over the same period.

Taylor Gillespie, Laubacher’s campaign manager, said in a statement that the DCCC announcement reflects what her campaign has heard in the district for months. She said Boebert has raised healthcare costs and continued “to spend billions on an irresponsible war instead of putting Colorado families first.”

“This race is competitive because people are ready for a change,” Gillespie said in a statement. “Eileen is offering voters something different: a leader who will fight for a balanced budget, support term limits, lower costs, and actually follow through on what she promises.”

Zach Bannon, spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said voters in eastern Colorado are ready to “reject today’s radical far-left liberal agenda” and send Boebert back to Congress. 

“Congresswoman Lauren Boebert is a fighter for eastern Colorado who has a proven track record of advancing common sense conservative principles in Congress,” Bannon said in a statement.

The last Democrat to represent Colorado’s 4th District was Betsy Markey, who served one term from 2009 to 2011.

Democrats already hold four seats

U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd of Grand Junction beat Frisch to win his first term representing the 3rd District with just under 51% of the district’s vote in 2024. Democrat Dwayne Romero will look to unseat Hurd in November. 

The 3rd District encompasses the Western Slope and the southwest corner of the state, sweeping east to include Pueblo, Otero and Las Animas counties. The district leans Republican.

“Jeff Hurd is a weak freshman known for kowtowing to Republican leadership and billionaires, even when it hurts Coloradans,” DelBene said in a statement. “Voters are sick and tired of Hurd’s broken promises and cost-hiking agenda, and that’s why they’ll fire him this November.” 

Bannon said Hurd is a “commonsense leader” who has delivered real results for western and southern Colorado. 

“Rural Coloradans have no interest in electing a far-left liberal who pushes the Democrats’ radical agenda and will re-elect commonsense conservative Jeff Hurd this fall,” Bannon said. 

Colorado has eight congressional districts, four of which are held by Democrats. Those are expected to be safe for Democratic nominees in the November election.