Democrats Lag Behind in Colorado 3rd District Spending as Election Nears

Residents of Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District face a final week of campaigning marked by a stark disparity in outside financial support. As the November 3 election approaches, the race between Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd and Democrat Dwayne Romero remains statistically tied, yet the funding flows into the district favor the incumbent.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee designated the district as a top target in early October, aiming to rally liberal groups to fund Romero’s challenge. However, data from OpenSecrets indicates that these allied organizations have spent approximately $15,000 in independent expenditures for Romero through Monday morning. In contrast, groups supporting Hurd have deployed more than $3 million in the district over the same period.

Much of the Republican spending originates from super PACs aligned with President Donald Trump. The Safety & Affordability PAC reported spending roughly $1 million on television advertisements on October 19 to attack Romero. Combined with the No Going Back PAC, these Trump-aligned groups have spent $2.5 million in the district through Monday. Their ads often label Romero as a liberal and reference his 2011 guilty plea for driving while ability impaired in Denver.

The House Majority PAC, a Democratic group linked to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, will begin airing television ads against Hurd on Tuesday. The spot focuses on Hurd’s connections to Trump and his vote for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The PAC intends to use only $300,000 of the $1 million it reserved for the 3rd District, redirecting the remaining funds to the 8th Congressional District.

Candidate fundraising also shows a gap. Hurd has raised and spent about $4 million on his reelection bid, including $1 million from PACs tied to House Speaker Mike Johnson. Romero has raised and spent approximately $1.5 million, which includes $460,000 he personally loaned to the campaign. Romero also had to use campaign funds to win a contested primary in June.

Adam Frisch, an Aspen resident who ran for the seat in 2022 and 2024, noted the difficulty of attracting national money to the district. He stated that while Democrats have many opportunities this cycle, they lack the resources to compete in all of them. Seth Masket, a political science professor at the University of Denver, observed that the Democratic Party is not particularly rich, creating a situation where there are more viable races than the party can afford to support.

A poll released by the DCCC on Friday shows Romero leading Hurd by one percentage point. The last Democrat to represent the 3rd District was John Salazar, who lost his seat in 2010. Lauren Boebert held the seat until 2022, when she lost a close primary to Hurd after deciding to run in a different district. Hurd has maintained support from moderate Democrats and is currently backed by Trump, who had previously called him a RINO.