2006 Colorado gubernatorial election
Election in the United States of America
The 2006 Colorado gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican governor Bill Owens was unable to run due to term limits, and the election was won by Democratic nominee Bill Ritter.
With his win, Democrats obtained a trifecta in the state for the first time since 1963. As of 2026, this is the last time the Governor's office in Colorado changed partisan control.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Bill Ritter, former District Attorney of Denver
Campaign
In the leadup to the Democratic primary, Bill Ritter, the former District Attorney of Denver, emerged as the leading Democratic candidate. Though several other prominent state Democrats, including Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and State House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, considered running for Governor, both ultimately declined to do so. State Representative Gary Lindstrom, the only other candidate besides Ritter in the race, ended his campaign on February 28, 2006. Ritter's personal opposition to abortion motivated pro-choice leaders in the state party to seek alternatives to him, but none ultimately materialized, and opposition to Ritter softened with his pledge to not alter the state's liberal abortion laws.
Results
Republican primary
Candidates
Bob Beauprez, U.S. Congressman from Colorado's 7th congressional district
Campaign
With popular two-term Governor Bill Owens barred from seeking re-election, an open race developed for the Republican nomination to succeed him. The race looked like it would be between Congressman Bob Beauprez, who represented the swingy Denver suburbs in Congress, and former University of Denver President Marc Holtzman.
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Contemporary correspondence, administrative files and participant testimony can test how later narratives organized the event or institution. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 13, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5148998. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2006, 1963 and 2026.
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