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Colorado's 6th Congressional District elections, 2014

U.S. House, Colorado District 6 General Election, 2014

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Mike Coffman Incumbent	51.9%	143,467
	Democratic	Andrew Romanoff	43%	118,847
	Libertarian	Norm Olsen	3.1%	8,623
	Green	Gary Swing	2%	5,503
Total Votes	276,440
Source: Colorado Secretary of State

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Colorado's 6th Congressional District

General Election Date
November 4, 2014

Primary Date
June 24, 2014

November 4 Election Winner:
Mike Coffman

Incumbent prior to election:
Mike Coffman

Race Ratings
Cook Political Report: Toss Up^[1]

Sabato's Crystal Ball: Toss Up^[2]

Colorado U.S. House Elections District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7

2014 U.S. Senate Elections

The 6th Congressional District of Colorado held an election for the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014.

Incumbent Mike Coffman (Colorado) won re-election in 2014. He defeated Andrew Romanoff (D) in the general election on November 4, 2014.^[3]

Our analysis pointed to Colorado's 6th Congressional District being a battleground with a fairly even split of registered Democratic and Republican voters.^[4]^[5] The margin of victory in the 2012 congressional election was only 2 percent, and the district was won by President Barack Obama by 5.1 percent in 2012 and 8.7 percent in 2008.

Incumbent Mike Coffman (Colorado) defeated a formidable challenger in former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff (D) in the general election. He also defeated Libertarian Norm Olsen and Green Party candidate Gary Swing.^[3]

Candidate Filing Deadline	Primary Election	General Election
March 31, 2014	June 24, 2014	November 4, 2014

Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election.

Colorado utilizes a semi-closed primary system. According to Section 1-7-201 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, " An eligible unaffiliated elector, including a preregistrant who is eligible under section 1-2-101 (2)(c), is entitled to vote in the primary election of a major political party without affiliating with that political party."^[6]^[7]^[8]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Voter registration: Voters were able to register to vote in the primary by either June 2 (by mail, at a voter registration agency, voter registration drive or DMV), June 16 (online) or on election day (in-person at a voter service polling center). For the general election, voters could register through election day, November 4, 2014.^[9]

See also: Colorado elections, 2014

Incumbent: Heading into the election the incumbent was Mike Coffman (Colorado) (R), who was first elected in 2008.

Colorado's 6th Congressional District is one of five located in central Colorado. It includes portions of Adams, Arapahoe, and Douglas counties.^[10]

Candidates

General election candidates

June 24, 2014, primary results

Election results

U.S. House, Colorado District 6 General Election, 2014

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Mike Coffman Incumbent	51.9%	143,467
	Democratic	Andrew Romanoff	43%	118,847
	Libertarian	Norm Olsen	3.1%	8,623
	Green	Gary Swing	2%	5,503
Total Votes	276,440
Source: Colorado Secretary of State

Race background

Coffman's narrow re-election victory in 2012 signaled to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that the 6th District was vulnerable to partisan switch in 2014.

According to a Roll Call report released on Jan. 22, the DCCC capitalized on the elite guest lists at events surrounding the presidential inauguration to vet potential candidates in three promising congressional districts, including former Colorado Speaker Romanoff, who had already been considering a bid for the 6th District seat.^[13] The 6th District became significantly more hospitable to Democratic candidates after 2011, when it was redrawn to include nearly as many Democratic and unaffiliated voters as Republican voters.^[14] Romanoff officially declared his candidacy on Feb 1.^[15]

Democratic Super PAC House Majority PAC listed incumbent Coffman as one of 10 they were targeting as vulnerable incumbent Republicans in 2014, with the focus on those holding competitive seats.^[16]

Democratic spending

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee canceled over $1 million in reserved airtime during the final two weeks of the election. The reserved money was instead used in other competitive races across the country. The funding was pulled after consistent polling showed incumbent Coffman with an edge in the race.^[17]

Debates

On August 14, 2014, Rep. Coffman and challenger Romanoff squared off in a debate over immigration, campaign finance and the budget. During the debate, Romanoff asked Coffman to agree to a deal to refuse all "special interest" money, but Coffman declined his offer.^[18]

Immigration was a large issue in the debate. Coffman called for an immigration solution that prioritized securing the border and opposed "a special path to citizenship for adults who knowingly broke the law." Romanoff countered by calling for "the comprehensive immigration reform this nation so desperately needs."^[18]

The two candidates also clashed on the budget, healthcare and abortion rights. Coffman supported repeal of the Affordable Care Act and opposed abortion rights, while Romanoff wanted to fix the law and supported abortion rights.^[18]

Another debate was held on September 23, 2014. In the debate, Coffman and Romanoff discussed climate change, immigration, campaign finance and ads opposing each other. Romanoff was more aggressive in this debate than in the previous one, while Coffman seemed more hesitant than in his previous appearance. Romanoff largely focused on congressional gridlock and partisanship, while Coffman criticized Romanoff on his record while speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives.^[19]

Romanoff said, "I am running for Congress because I am optimistic about the prospects for our country to move forward despite the efforts of so many in Congress to hold us back, and you have some evidence of that on the other side of the stage tonight. We're not going to get the progress we need from this Congress and, I'm sad to say, not from this congressman."^[19]

Coffman claimed that Romanoff had a "miserable record" with small businesses and said, "What confidence can you give to small-business owners throughout the district that you're going to be different as a member of Congress?"^[19]

The final English language debate between the two candidates was held on October 9, 2014, and the issue of immigration took the spotlight again. Romanoff criticized Coffman's record on the issue by reminding voters that Coffman opposed giving provisional status to children who where brought into the country illegally back in 2008. Coffman responded by saying that he had changed his mind after meeting with immigrant families that lived in fear of being separated from their children. He said, "We do have to secure the borders and enforce the laws. You have to be compassionate in keeping families together."^[20]

One final debate was held on October 30, 2014. In a first for Colorado, the debate was conducted entirely in Spanish, despite the fact that it was neither candidate's native language. In the debate, the candidates discussed health care, college costs and immigration.^[20]^[21]

Romanoff focused on Coffman's former hard stance on immigration, including his opposition to a bill that would have allowed children brought into the U.S. illegally to become citizens. Coffman also hit Romanoff for his prior support of a law that would have required police to contact federal authorities when they noticed someone they believed to be an illegal immigrant.^[21]

Endorsements

Mike Coffman

Coffman was endorsed by The Denver Post in October 2014. In the endorsement, the newspaper said that it was Coffman's, "independence of spirit that makes the Aurora Republican a valuable member of Congress, and one of the reasons we think he should be re-elected in Colorado's 6th Congressional District."^[22]

Media

SEIU

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) launched an ad campaign on July 15, 2014, targeting four Republican incumbents in the U.S. House over their chamber’s inaction on immigration reform in 2014.

The ad campaign targeted Coffman and Cory Gardner of Colorado, David Valadao of California and Joe Heck of Nevada with a round of Spanish-language television ads for about two weeks. The ad buy was in the mid-six figures.^[23]

League of Conservation Voters ad released August 12, 2013, against Mike Coffman (Colorado), "Ostrich Ad"

Climate change ad

The League of Conservation Voters began an ad campaign on climate change on August 12, 2013. The campaign targeted three House Republicans, including Mike Coffman (Colorado).^[24]

The ad stated, "This is the African Ostrich. Tall, flightless, head in the sand. And this is Congressman Coffman, also with his head in the sand — on climate change.”^[24]

The group also launched ads against Dan Benishek and Rodney Davis. In total, the campaign spent roughly $2 million on the ads.^[24]

Issues

See also: Energy and the 2014 election: the ballots and beyond

Mike Coffman

Coffman's campaign website listed the following issues:^[25]

“

Jobs and the Economy: "The government cannot grow the economy by itself, but it can empower small businesses, entrepreneurs and the overall private sector to grow our economy. We can do that by reducing the tax and regulatory burden government places on businesses."

Spending and Debt: "I believe that our national debt is the greatest threat to our national security and we must reform Washington’s broken spending policies. I have taken on big spenders in both parties, including being a rare Republican willing to look at cutting defense spending. I believe that we can reduce the bureaucracy at the Pentagon, and through other targeted cuts of defense spending we can reduce this nation’s debt without risking national security."

Healthcare: "Obamacare has been a disaster for this country. It has been a disaster for middle class families. Premiums are rising for middle class families, deductibles are skyrocketing and families are losing access to their long time doctors. Despite promises by the President and Democrats that people could keep their doctors and health insurance if they liked them, the opposite has proved true. Nearly 350,000 Coloradans have received health insurance cancellation notices."

Immigration: "We must fix our broken immigration system. I believe comprehensive immigration reform must be done in a step-by-step process and adhere to three principles: it must secure our borders, grow our economy and keep families together."

^[26]

”

—Mike Coffman's campaign website, http://coffmanforcongress.com/issues/

Andrew Romanoff

Romanoff stated his support for the Affordable Care Act.^[27] He declined to state how he felt about the Keystone Pipeline until a delayed State Department review is complete.^[28]

Romanoff's campaign website listed the following issues:^[29]

“

Defending Our Nation: "Our federal government’s most important obligation is to defend our nation and protect its citizens from harm. Our national security demands a fighting force that is well trained and well equipped, a unified intelligence community, and strong relationships with our global allies."

Honoring Our Veterans: "From the days of the American Revolution to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, our nation has relied on the courage and sacrifice of our Armed Forces. America’s heroes merit our respect and support not only during their military service but also upon their return to civilian life."

Growing Our Economy: "Growing our economy is one of America’s most urgent priorities. We need leaders in Washington who value our jobs – not simply their own. In Colorado, I fought to strengthen the middle class, modernize our aging infrastructure, and train our workforce to compete around the world."

Restoring Fiscal Responsibility: "The House I led balanced the budget every year. During my tenure as Speaker, we finished our work ahead of schedule, all four years in a row. Congress, in contrast, careens from one self-inflicted crisis to the next, lurching from showdown to shutdown. This is no way to run a government."

Creating World-Class Schools: "Our children deserve a world-class system of public education. The productivity of our workforce and the vitality of our democracy depend on it. That’s why we need to expand access to early childhood education, recruit and retain top-flight teachers, and make our colleges and universities more affordable."

^[26]

”

—Andrew Romanoff's campaign website, http://www.andrewromanoff.com/issues

Polls

General election
Poll	Mike Coffman	Andrew Romanoff	Undecided/Other	Margin of Error	Sample Size

Keating Research - for Andrew Romanoff (October 10-12, 2014)	44%	43%	13%	+/-4.4	504
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

Key votes

Below are important votes the incumbent cast during the 113th Congress.

HR 676

See also: Boehner's lawsuit against the Obama administration

On July 30, 2014, the U.S. House approved a resolution 225 to 201 to sue President Barack Obama for exceeding his constitutional authority. Five Republicans—Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Paul Broun of Georgia, Scott Garrett of New Jersey, Walter Jones of North Carolina and Steve Stockman of Texas—voted with Democrats against the lawsuit.^[30] Coffman joined the other 224 Republicans in favor of the lawsuit. All Democrats voted against the resolution.^[31]^[32]

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201.^[33] At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference.^[34] Mike Coffman (Colorado) voted for the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.^[35]

The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.^[36] The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Mike Coffman (Colorado) voted for HR 2775.^[37]

Campaign contributions

Andrew Romanoff

Andrew Romanoff (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly^[38]	April 15, 2013	$0.00	$514,477.46	$(21,786.07)	$492,691.39
July Quarterly^[39]	July 15, 2013	$492,691.39	$506,169.24	$(80,444.03)	$918,416.60
October Quarterly^[40]	October 15, 2013	$918,416.60	$524,871.09	$(108,787.59)	$1,334,500.10
Year-End^[41]	January 29, 2014	$1,334,500	$458,943	$(123,826)	$1,669,617
April Quarterly^[42]	April 15, 2014	$1,669,617	$603,520	$(174,519)	$2,098,619
Pre-Primary^[43]	June 12, 2014	$2,098,619	$465,824	$(213,442)	$2,351,001
July Quarterly^[44]	July 15, 2014	$2,351,001	$376,684	$(52,263)	$2,675,422
October Quarterly^[45]	October 15, 2014	$2,675,422	$1,088,251	$(3,092,283)	$671,391
Pre-General^[46]	October 23, 2014	$671,391	$238,892	$(783,791)	$126,491
			Running totals
			$4,777,631.79	$(4,651,141.69)

Mike Coffman

Mike Coffman (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly^[47]	April 15, 2013	$7,832.78	$519,033.99	$(135,175.75)	$391,691.02
July Quarterly^[48]	July 15, 2013	$391,691.02	$566,203.80	$(103,040.91)	$854,853.91
October Quarterly^[49]	October 15, 2013	$854,853.91	$524,441.70	$(151,637.33)	$1,227,658.28
Year-End^[50]	January 31, 2014	$1,227,658	$404,827	$(154,849)	$1,477,636
April Quarterly^[51]	April 15, 2014	$1,477,636	$593,805	$(226,699)	$1,844,742
Pre-Primary^[52]	June 12, 2014	$1,844,742	$336,669	$(214,576)	$1,966,835
July Quarterly^[53]	July 15, 2014	$1,966,835	$405,083	$(83,705)	$2,288,213
October Quarterly^[54]	October 15, 2014	$2,288,213	$855,975	$(1,411,897)	$1,732,291
Pre-General^[55]	October 23, 2014	$1,732,291	$185,095	$(996,758)	$920,627
			Running totals
			$4,391,133.49	$(3,478,337.99)

District history

Candidate ballot access

Find detailed information on ballot access requirements in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

2012

On November 6, 2012, Mike Coffman (Colorado) (R) won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Joe Miklosi, Patrick Provost and Kathy Polhemus in the general election.

U.S. House, Colorado District 6 General Election, 2012

Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Joe Miklosi	45.8%	156,930
	Republican	Mike Coffman Incumbent	47.8%	163,922
	Libertarian	Patrick Provost	2.5%	8,597
	Independent	Kathy Polhemus	3.9%	13,442
Total Votes	342,891
Source: Colorado Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Mike Coffman won re-election to the United States House. He defeated John Flerlage (D), Rob McNealy (L) and Michael Shawn Kearns (Write-in) in the general election.^[56]

U.S. House, Colorado District 6 General Election, 2010
Party	Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Mike Coffman incumbent	65.7%	217,368
	Democratic	John Flerlage	31.5%	104,104
	Libertarian	Rob McNealy	2.9%	9,466
	Write-in	Michael Shawn Kearns	0%	5
Total Votes	330,943

External links

Footnotes

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Senators

Representatives

Democratic Party (6)

Republican Party (4)