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2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Colorado

← 2006 November 4, 2008 2010 →
All 7 Colorado seats to the United States House of Representatives
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Republican Last election 4 3 Seats won 5 2 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 1,259,768 990,870 Percentage 55.16% 43.38% Swing 1.04% 2.85%
Election results by district Election results by county Democratic   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90% Republican   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%

Elections in Colorado
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The 2008 congressional elections in Colorado were held on November 4, 2008, to determine who will represent the state of Colorado in the United States House of Representatives, coinciding with the presidential and senatorial elections. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 111th Congress from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011.

Colorado had seven seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States census. Its 2007-2008 congressional delegation consisted of four Democrats and three Republicans. After the elections, it consisted of five Democrats and two Republicans. District 4 changed party (from Republican to Democratic), which was the only district CQ Politics had forecasted to be at some risk for the incumbent party.

The Primary election was held August 12, 2008.

Overview

Match-up summary

District breakdown

District 1

2008 Colorado's 1st congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee Diana DeGette George Lilly Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 203,756 67,346 Percentage 71.9% 23.7%

County Results DeGette:      50-60%      70-80% Lilly:      60-70%

U.S. Representative before election Diana DeGette Democratic Elected U.S. Representative Diana DeGette Democratic

Democratic incumbent Diana DeGette won against Republican nominee George Lilly. DeGette was unopposed in her primary, and Lilly won against Charles Crain in his primary. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 2

2008 Colorado's 2nd congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee Jared Polis Scott Starin Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 215,602 116,619 Percentage 62.6% 33.9%

County Results Polis:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80% Starin:      40-50%

U.S. Representative before election Mark Udall Democratic Elected U.S. Representative Jared Polis Democratic

Democratic nominee Jared Polis, a businessman, won against Republican nominee Scott Starin, an aerospace engineer. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

This district had been represented by Democrat Mark Udall since 1999. With the retirement of Senator Wayne Allard, Udall ran for the Senate, leaving this an open seat. Polis won the Democratic primary against Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald and Colorado Conservation Trust Director Will Shafroth. Starin was unopposed in the Republican primary. Former Eagle County Commissioner Tom Stone was earlier considered a possible Republican candidate, as was Boulder Mayor Mark Ruzzin for the Green Party. Democrats held a strong edge in this district, with the most recent Democratic presidential candidate, John Kerry, having won 59% in 2004, as it was centered around heavily Democratic Boulder.

District 3

2008 Colorado's 3rd congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee John Salazar Wayne Wolf Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 203,457 126,762 Percentage 61.6% 38.4%

County results Precinct resultsSalazar:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%     80-90%      >90% Wolf:      50-60%     60-70%      70-80% Tie:      50-60%     No Votes

U.S. Representative before election John Salazar Democratic Elected U.S. Representative John Salazar Democratic

Democratic incumbent John Salazar won against Republican nominee Wayne Wolf. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

District 4

2008 Colorado's 4th congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee Betsy Markey Marilyn Musgrave Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 187,348 146,030 Percentage 56.2% 43.8%

County results Precinct resultsCounty Results Markey:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%     80-90% Musgrave:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%      >90% Tie:      50-60%     No Votes

U.S. Representative before election Marilyn Musgrave Republican Elected U.S. Representative Betsy Markey Democratic

Democratic nominee Betsy Markey, businesswoman and regional director for Senator Ken Salazar won against Republican incumbent Marilyn Musgrave, who had represented this district since 2003. Both ran unopposed in the party primary elections. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Leans Democratic'. The Rothenberg Political Report rated it 'Toss-Up/Tilt Democratic'. The Cook Political Report ranked it 'Republican Toss Up'.

Musgrave, a conservative known for her staunch opposition to gay marriage, won in 2006 by winning a plurality (46%) of the vote against Angie Paccione (D) and a strong Reform Party challenge from Eric Eidsness, who managed to garner 11% of the vote. That, along with her 51% showing in 2004 despite George W. Bush winning 58% of the vote in this eastern Colorado district that includes the Fort Collins area, made her vulnerable in 2008.

Democrats suffered a setback earlier when State Senator Brandon Schaffer suddenly dropped out, citing his party's failure to clear the field. Eidsness switched parties again, having switched from Republican to Reform Party the year prior, and became a Democrat, which could have fueled a potential rematch with Musgrave in 2008. 2006 nominee Angie Paccione briefly launched a campaign as well, but left the race in September 2007. On October 24, 2008, the National Republican Congressional Committee abandoned Marilyn Musgrave's 2008 reelection campaign, believing the race was lost. This decision was based solely on Musgrave's poor poll numbers.

Musgrave launched a negative advertisement, attacking Markey over the business of Syscom Systems, the data-processing equipment company run by Markey and her husband. The Musgrave ad was called "highly misleading" by a Denver television station that investigated the facts. After her defeat, Musgrave would not comment on the election results with the media, nor would she concede the race or contact Markey to congratulate her. She also did not thank her campaign staff for their efforts. She later recorded a robocall for Republican Georgia senator Saxby Chambliss, saying that she was defeated by "leftist special interests" who "suppressed the truth with vicious attacks and lies."

District 5

2008 Colorado's 5th congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee Doug Lamborn Hal Bidlack Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 183,179 113,027 Percentage 60.0% 37.0%

County Results Lamborn:      50-60%      60-70% Bidlack:      50-60%

U.S. Representative before election Doug Lamborn Republican Elected U.S. Representative Doug Lamborn Republican

Freshman Republican incumbent Doug Lamborn won against Democratic nominee Hal Bidlack, a Clinton administration National Security Council official, and Independent Rich Hand, running as a write-in candidate. The district is based in heavily Republican Colorado Springs. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Republican'.

Lamborn got bad press when two constituents accused him of making a threatening phone call in response to a critical letter they wrote. He won against Jeff Crank and Bentley Rayburn, more moderate Republicans who had also run in 2006, in the Republican primary. In 2006, Lamborn had narrowly won a nasty multi-candidate primary with 27% of the vote, despite previous representative Joel Hefley's endorsement of Crank, citing Lamborn's "sleazy" campaign. Crank and Rayburn thus came to a gentleman's agreement - they would jointly conduct a poll of the primary, and whoever of the two of them was in third place would drop out and endorse the other, so as to have a better chance of defeating Lamborn. Rayburn came third in the poll, but he refused to drop out and Lamborn won the primary with 44% of the vote.

Amid worries of vulnerability, Lamborn then won the general election by a 59%-41% margin, becoming the highest vote getter for a GOP Congressional candidate in the state in the 2006 cycle.

District 6

2008 Colorado's 6th congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee Mike Coffman Hank Eng Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 250,877 162,641 Percentage 60.7% 39.3%

County results Precinct resultsCoffman:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90% Eng:      50-60%      60-70% Tie:      50-60%     No Votes

U.S. Representative before election Tom Tancredo Republican Elected U.S. Representative Mike Coffman Republican

Republican nominee Mike Coffman won against Democratic nominee Hank Eng. CQ Politics, The Cook Political Report and The Rothenberg Political Report all forecasted the race as 'Safe Republican', despite some minor controversies surrounding Mike Coffman and Colorado Ethics Watch.

Eng ran unopposed in the Democratic Primary. Coffman defeated a crowded field of candidates including Ted Harvey, Steve Ward, and Will Armstrong (who was endorsed by the State GOP). Republican incumbent Tom Tancredo, who held the seat since 1999, decided to retire leaving it an open seat. His seat was considered to be the most Republican-dominated district of the Denver-area seats and was also one of the wealthiest in the nation. Tancredo was the second highest vote getter for a Republican congressional candidate statewide (59%-40%) in 2006, just behind Doug Lamborn in the 5th district. The district includes Columbine High School, which was devastated in a tragic 1999 school massacre.

District 7

2008 Colorado's 7th congressional district election

← 20062010 →

Nominee Ed Perlmutter John Lerew Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 173,937 100,057 Percentage 63.5% 36.5%

County results Precinct resultsPerlmutter:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90% Lerew:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90% Tie:      50-60%     No Votes

U.S. Representative before election Ed Perlmutter Democratic Elected U.S. Representative Ed Perlmutter Democratic

Democratic incumbent Ed Perlmutter, who had represented this district since 2007, won against Republican nominee John W. Lerew. CQ Politics forecasted the race as 'Safe Democrat'.

In 2006, Perlmutter won 55% of the vote in this suburban Denver district that narrowly went to John Kerry with 52% in 2004. The district's voter registration was split, with independents constituting a slim plurality of 35% compared to Democrats (34%) and Republicans (31%).

References

Specific

1. Candidate List for the August 12, 2008 Primary Election Archived July 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Colorado Secretary of State
2. ^ "Official Publication of the Abstract of Votes Cast for the 2008 Primary and 2008 General" (PDF). Secretary of State of Colorado. August 14, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 27, 2010. Retrieved October 8, 2009.
3. The Coloradoan
4. "Musgrave Attack Ad Hits Markey On Biz Dealings". cbs4denver.com. KCNC-TV. September 19, 2008. Archived from the original on October 30, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
5. Colo Springs couple says got threatening call from congressman Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine KJCT 8 News, September 2, 2007
6. "Rayburn loses GOP gamble | Colorado Statesman". Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 2, 2014.
7. Ethics Watch Requests Criminal Investigation of Coffman Archived 2009-01-09 at the Wayback Machine Colorado Ethics Watch, June 15, 2007

General

• 2008 Competitive House Race Chart The Cook Political Report, October 28, 2008
• 2008 House Ratings The Rothenberg Political Report, October 22, 2008

External links

• Elections Center Archived July 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine from the Colorado Secretary of State
• U.S. Congress candidates for Colorado at Project Vote Smart
• Colorado U.S. House Races from 2008 Race Tracker
• Campaign contributions for Colorado congressional races from OpenSecrets
• District 1 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 1 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• District 2 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 2 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• District 3 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 3 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• District 4 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 4 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• Musgrave (R-i) vs Markey (D) graph of collected poll results from Pollster.com
• District 5 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 5 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• Cherry Creek News: Where's Hank from Cherry Creek News
• District 6 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 6 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets
• District 7 race ranking and details from CQ Politics
• District 7 campaign contributions from OpenSecrets

v t e Elections in Colorado
Presidential elections	1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Senate elections	Class 2 1912 1918 1924 1930 1936 1942 1948 1954 1960 1966 1972 1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 2008 2014 2020 Class 3 1912 1914 1920 1926 1932 1938 1944 1950 1956 1962 1968 1974 1980 1986 1992 1998 2004 2010 2016 2022
House elections	2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
State elections	2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
Gubernatorial elections	1876 1878 1880 1882 1884 1886 1888 1890 1892 1894 1896 1898 1900 1902 1904 1906 1908 1910 1912 1914 1916 1918 1920 1922 1924 1926 1928 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 1940 1942 1944 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022
Legislative elections	State Senate 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024 State House 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024

• United States House of Representatives elections in Colorado
• 2008 United States House of Representatives elections
• 2008 Colorado elections