Colorado voters split on redistricting amendment
Amendment 86, which tightens rules for mid-cycle congressional map changes, stood at 46.5 percent approval as of 12:30 a.m. Wednesday.
By Marek Collins ·
Colorado voters are deciding whether to lock down the state’s congressional district maps against mid-cycle changes. The outcome of Amendment 86 remained uncertain in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
At 12:30 a.m., 46.5 percent of tabulated ballots supported the measure while 53.5 percent opposed it. The initiative requires 55 percent approval to pass because it modifies the state constitution. The Associated Press had not called the race at that time.
If adopted, Amendment 86 would mandate that the state’s Independent Redistricting Commission reconvene for any congressional map drawn outside the standard ten-year cycle. The next regular redistricting is scheduled for 2031. The commission would hold public hearings and approve or reject maps based on whether they keep communities of interest whole and avoid favoring one political party.
The measure serves as a conservative counter to a Democratic effort that failed to reach the November ballot. Democrats proposed a mid-cycle redraw for the 2028 and 2030 elections that would have given them a strong chance to flip three Republican-held seats. That plan left the Republican Party with only one of Colorado’s eight congressional districts. The Colorado Supreme Court ruled in June that the Democratic proposal violated the single subject rule of the state constitution.
Advance Colorado, a conservative nonprofit that does not disclose donors, sponsored Amendment 86 along with five other statewide measures. The Fair Redistricting Colorado issue committee backed the initiative. It received $250,000 in August from the American Revival PAC, a group created by House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana.
Republicans decided to keep Amendment 86 on the ballot even after the Democratic redistricting effort was blocked. They viewed the measure as a proactive step to prevent future mid-cycle map changes. No organized opposition appeared for the amendment.
The Democratic redistricting effort had cost $4.7 million before the Supreme Court decision ended its chances this year. The normal census-driven process last ran in 2021, producing a new map for the 2022 election.
Source: The Colorado Sun
