In August 2024, John Hickenlooper’s campaign confirmed that his 2026 re-election bid will be his final Senate run. He has said he supports a two-term limit for senators and intends to serve only two terms — though Congress has no such limit, so the pledge binds only as far as his word. (Denver Post)
How he got here
Hickenlooper was a two-term governor and, before that, mayor of Denver. He briefly ran for president in 2019, then entered the Senate race and unseated Republican Sen. Cory Gardner in 2020 — the same campaign during which the state ethics ruling landed, weeks before the primary. He has been a reliable Democratic vote in a chamber where, for much of his term, the margins were razor-thin.
What’s on the ballot
An incumbent asking for a final term is asking voters to ratify a record. That record includes the Senate work — four committees, a bipartisan brand, a still-thin list of signature laws — and the 2020 ethics ruling: two gift-ban violations and a contempt citation from his time as governor. Both are part of the same public record voters weigh this primary.
Colorado primary
Colorado’s statewide primary is June 30, 2026. Mail ballots are sent to active registered voters in the weeks beforehand; Colorado is a universal mail-ballot state, and unaffiliated voters may vote in a party primary. Check your registration and ballot status at GoVoteColorado.gov.
This site takes no formal position on how to vote and is not authorized by any campaign. It exists to make the documented record easy to find while that decision is in front of you.
