Ganahl wins GOP primary to challenge Colorado Gov. Polis

Heidi Ganahl is projected to win the GOP primary for Colorado governor on Tuesday, delivering a win for establishment Republicans in a state that has shifted leftward for years.

The Associated Press called the race at 9:57 p.m. EDT.

Ganahl, a member of the University of Colorado Board of Regents, cast herself as a more moderate, establishment-aligned candidate who could appeal to independents and centrist voters in her bid to take on Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.

She faced a primary challenge from Greg Lopez, a former mayor of suburban Parker, Colo., who cast himself as a hard-line conservative, repeatedly echoing former President Trump’s false claim that the 2020 election was stolen. 

Republicans haven’t held the governor’s mansion in Colorado since 2007, and Democrats took full control of the state legislature in 2018 as part of a leftward shift in the Centennial State.

Ganahl’s more moderate brand of politics could help the party reclaim at least some power in the state, especially given the brutal political headwinds Democrats are facing this year. 

Still, ousting Polis is shaping up to be a difficult task.

Public polling in the race has been scarce, but a recent survey commissioned by the Democratic-aligned group ProgressNow Colorado showed Polis leading Lopez by a 20-point margin and Ganahl by an 18-point margin.

The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election handicapper, currently puts the Colorado gubernatorial race in its “solid” Democratic column.