2000 United States presidential election in Colorado explained

Election Name:	2000 United States presidential election in Colorado
Country:	Colorado
Type:	presidential
Ongoing:	no
Previous Election:	1996 United States presidential election in Colorado
Previous Year:	1996
Next Election:	2004 United States presidential election in Colorado
Next Year:	2004
Election Date:	November 7, 2000
Image1:	Official Portrait- President George Walker Bush, 43rd President of the United States, Republican - DPLA - 7482eac0e113bf03014d1686a3733f97.jpeg
Nominee1:	George W. Bush
Party1:	Republican Party (United States)
Home State1:	Texas
Running Mate1:	Dick Cheney
Electoral Vote1:	8
Popular Vote1:	883,745
Percentage1:	50.75%
Nominee2:	Al Gore
Party2:	Democratic Party (United States)
Home State2:	Tennessee
Running Mate2:	Joe Lieberman
Electoral Vote2:	0
Popular Vote2:	738,227
Percentage2:	42.39%
Image3:	Ralph Nader 1999 (cropped).jpg
Nominee3:	Ralph Nader
Party3:	Green Party (United States)
Home State3:	Connecticut
Running Mate3:	Winona LaDuke
Electoral Vote3:	0
Popular Vote3:	91,434
Percentage3:	5.25%
Map Size:	280px
President
Before Election:	Bill Clinton
Before Party:	Democratic Party (United States)
After Election:	George W. Bush
After Party:	Republican Party (United States)

The 2000 United States presidential election in Colorado took place on November 7, 2000, and was part of the 2000 United States presidential election. Voters chose eight representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

Colorado was won by Governor George W. Bush by an 8.36% margin of victory, although almost 7% of the electorate voted for third-party candidates. Nader's best performance in the state and indeed the nation was in San Miguel County where he received over 17.20% of the vote,^[1] a performance that remains the Green Party's second best performance in any county nationwide after this record was bested in 2016 when Jill Stein carried 25% of the vote in Kalawao County, Hawaii.^[2]

, this is the last election in which San Juan County, Gunnison County, Clear Creek County, Routt County, Eagle County, and La Plata County voted for a Republican presidential candidate, as well as the last time that Colorado voted to the right of many modern-day red and swing states, specifically Arizona, Arkansas, Florida,^[3] Louisiana, Missouri, Tennessee and West Virginia. Bush became the first Republican to win the White House without carrying Summit County since William Howard Taft in 1908.

Colorado was 1 of 14 states that Bill Clinton carried at least once that Gore, the sitting VP under Clinton in 2000, lost to Bush.

Results

2000 United States presidential election in Colorado^[4]
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Republican	George W. Bush	883,745	50.75%	8
	Democratic		738,227	42.39%	0
	Green	Ralph Nader	91,434	5.25%	0
	Libertarian	Harry Browne	12,799	0.73%	0
	American	Patrick Buchanan	10,465	0.60%	0
	Natural Law	John Hagelin	2,240	0.13%	0
	Constitution	Howard Phillips	1,319	0.08%	0
	Socialist	David McReynolds	712	0.04%	0
	Socialist Workers	James Harris	216	0.01%	0
	Prohibition	Earl Dodge	208	0.01%	0
Totals			1,741,365	100.00%	8
Voter turnout (Voting age)					54%

Results by county

County	George W. Bush Republican		Al Gore Democratic		Ralph Nader Green		Various candidates Other parties		Margin		Total votes cast
		%		%		%		%		%
	Adams		47,561		44.10%		54,132		50.19%		4,165		3.86%		1,994		1.85%		-6,571		-6.09%		107,852
	Alamosa		2,857		50.49%		2,455		43.38%		265		4.68%		82		1.44%		402		7.11%		5,659
	Arapahoe		97,768		51.47%		82,614		43.49%		6,952		3.66%		2,608		1.38%		15,154		7.98%		189,942
	Archuleta		2,988		62.80%		1,432		30.10%		265		5.57%		73		1.54%		1,556		32.70%		4,758
	Baca		1,663		73.00%		531		23.31%		47		2.06%		37		1.62%		1,132		49.69%		2,278
	Bent		1,096		55.83%		783		39.89%		44		2.24%		40		2.04%		313		15.94%		1,963
	Boulder		50,873		36.44%		69,983		50.12%		16,498		11.82%		2,272		1.63%		-19,110		-13.68%		139,626
	Chaffee		4,300		56.50%		2,768		36.37%		459		6.03%		83		1.09%		1,532		20.13%		7,610
	Cheyenne		957		78.96%		209		17.24%		22		1.82%		24		1.98%		748		61.72%		1,212
	Clear Creek		2,247		45.63%		2,188		44.44%		354		7.19%		135		2.73%		59		1.19%		4,924
	Conejos		1,772		48.27%		1,749		47.64%		79		2.15%		71		1.93%		23		0.63%		3,671
	Costilla		504		30.58%		1,054		63.96%		71		4.31%		19		1.15%		-550		-33.38%		1,648
	Crowley		855		59.17%		511		35.36%		28		1.94%		51		3.54%		343		23.81%		1,445
	Custer		1,451		68.74%		507		24.02%		100		4.74%		53		2.51%		944		44.72%		2,111
	Delta		8,372		65.99%		3,264		25.73%		852		6.72%		198		1.56%		5,108		40.26%		12,686
	Denver		61,224		30.87%		122,693		61.86%		11,624		5.86%		2,806		1.42%		-61,469		-30.99%		198,347
	Dolores		741		65.34%		293		25.84%		73		6.44%		27		2.38%		448		39.50%		1,134
	Douglas		56,007		64.95%		27,076		31.40%		2,230		2.59%		912		1.06%		28,931		33.55%		86,225
	Eagle		7,165		47.18%		6,772		44.59%		1,045		6.88%		206		1.35%		393		2.59%		15,188
	El Paso		128,294		63.91%		61,799		30.78%		7,116		3.54%		3,548		1.76%		66,495		33.13%		200,757
	Elbert		6,151		68.61%		2,326		25.95%		292		3.26%		196		2.19%		3,825		42.66%		8,965
	Fremont		9,914		61.75%		5,293		32.97%		516		3.21%		333		2.07%		4,621		28.78%		16,056
	Garfield		9,103		53.22%		6,087		35.59%		1,608		9.40%		306		1.80%		3,016		17.63%		17,104
	Gilpin		1,006		40.81%		1,099		44.58%		276		11.20%		84		3.40%		-93		-3.77%		2,465
	Grand		3,570		56.19%		2,308		36.33%		366		5.76%		109		1.71%		1,262		19.86%		6,353
	Gunnison		3,128		43.23%		3,059		42.27%		927		12.81%		122		1.69%		69		0.96%		7,236
	Hinsdale		316		55.83%		188		33.22%		51		9.01%		11		1.94%		128		22.61%		566
	Huerfano		1,466		46.19%		1,495		47.10%		169		5.32%		44		1.39%		-29		-0.91%		3,174
	Jackson		682		73.73%		173		18.70%		40		4.32%		30		3.23%		509		55.03%		925
	Jefferson		120,138		51.02%		100,970		42.88%		10,336		4.39%		4,047		1.71%		19,168		8.14%		235,491
	Kiowa		728		75.21%		211		21.80%		13		1.34%		16		1.66%		517		53.41%		968
	Kit Carson		2,542		73.51%		809		23.40%		58		1.68%		49		1.42%		1,733		50.11%		3,458
	La Plata		9,993		48.77%		7,864		38.38%		2,378		11.61%		255		1.25%		2,129		10.39%		20,490
	Lake		1,056		40.18%		1,296		49.32%		213		8.11%		63		2.40%		-240		-9.14%		2,628
	Larimer		62,429		52.67%		46,055		38.85%		8,194		6.91%		1,859		1.56%		16,374		13.82%		118,537
	Las Animas		2,569		42.16%		3,243		53.22%		199		3.27%		83		1.37%		-674		-11.06%		6,094
	Lincoln		1,630		74.12%		510		23.19%		27		1.23%		32		1.45%		1,120		50.93%		2,199
	Logan		5,531		68.32%		2,296		28.36%		140		1.73%		129		1.60%		3,235		39.96%		8,096
	Mesa		32,396		63.45%		15,465		30.29%		2,235		4.38%		958		1.88%		16,931		33.16%		51,054
	Mineral		294		60.49%		168		34.57%		19		3.91%		5		1.03%		126		25.92%		486
	Moffat		3,840		71.95%		1,223		22.92%		169		3.17%		105		1.97%		2,617		49.03%		5,337
	Montezuma		6,158		65.62%		2,556		27.24%		530		5.65%		140		1.50%		3,602		38.38%		9,384
	Montrose		9,266		65.18%		4,041		28.43%		656		4.61%		252		1.78%		5,225		36.75%		14,215
	Morgan		5,722		63.59%		2,885		32.06%		211		2.34%		180		1.99%		2,837		31.53%		8,998
	Otero		4,082		55.83%		2,963		40.52%		138		1.89%		129		1.76%		1,119		15.31%		7,312
	Ouray		1,279		57.28%		705		31.57%		224		10.03%		25		1.12%		574		25.71%		2,233
	Park		3,677		55.17%		2,393		35.90%		404		6.06%		191		2.87%		1,284		19.27%		6,665
	Phillips		1,573		70.86%		564		25.41%		48		2.16%		35		1.59%		1,009		45.45%		2,220
	Pitkin		2,565		32.88%		4,137		53.04%		1,013		12.99%		85		1.09%		-1,572		-20.16%		7,800
	Prowers		3,026		66.89%		1,361		30.08%		79		1.75%		58		1.28%		1,665		36.81%		4,524
	Pueblo		22,827		42.31%		28,888		53.55%		1,520		2.82%		711		1.32%		-6,061		-11.24%		53,946
	Rio Blanco		2,185		76.53%		543		19.02%		85		2.98%		42		1.47%		1,642		57.51%		2,855
	Rio Grande		3,111		61.30%		1,707		33.64%		179		3.53%		78		1.53%		1,404		27.66%		5,075
	Routt		4,472		46.40%		4,208		43.66%		820		8.51%		138		1.44%		264		2.74%		9,638
	Saguache		1,078		42.63%		1,145		45.27%		261		10.32%		45		1.77%		-67		-2.64%		2,529
	San Juan		210		48.17%		149		34.17%		58		13.30%		19		4.35%		61		14.00%		436
	San Miguel		1,043		32.04%		1,598		49.09%		560		17.20%		54		1.67%		-555		-17.05%		3,255
	Sedgwick		877		67.31%		384		29.47%		25		1.92%		17		1.30%		493		37.84%		1,303
	Summit		4,497		40.63%		5,304		47.92%		1,131		10.22%		136		1.22%		-807		-7.29%		11,068
	Teller		6,477		65.78%		2,750		27.93%		429		4.36%		191		1.93%		3,727		37.85%		9,847
	Washington		1,878		76.81%		477		19.51%		50		2.04%		40		1.63%		1,401		57.30%		2,445
	Weld		37,409		57.96%		23,436		36.31%		2,438		3.78%		1,258		1.94%		13,973		21.65%		64,541
	Yuma		3,156		72.42%		1,082		24.83%		60		1.38%		60		1.38%		2,074		47.59%		4,358
Total	883,745	50.75%	738,227	42.39%	91,434	5.25%	27,959	1.61%	145,518	8.36%	1,741,365

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Alamosa (Largest city: Alamosa)
• Bent (Largest city: Las Animas)
• Clear Creek (Largest city: Idaho Springs)
• Conejos (Largest city: Manassa)
• Eagle (Largest city: Edwards)
• Gunnison (Largest city: Gunnison)
• Mineral (Largest city: Creede)
• Otero (Largest city: La Junta)
• Routt (Largest city: Steamboat Springs)

By congressional district

Bush won four of six congressional districts.^[5]

District	Bush	Gore	Representative
		32%	61%		Diana DeGette
		42%	48%		Mark Udall
		53%	39%		Scott McInnis
		56%	37%		Bob Schaffer
		63%	32%		Joel Hefley
		51%	44%		Tom Tancredo

Electors

See main article: List of 2000 United States presidential electors.

Technically the voters of Colorado cast their ballots for electors: representatives to the Electoral College. Colorado is allocated 8 electors because it has 6 congressional districts and 2 senators. All candidates who appear on the ballot or qualify to receive write-in votes must submit a list of 8 electors, who pledge to vote for their candidate and his or her running mate. Whoever wins the majority of votes in the state is awarded all 8 electoral votes. Their chosen electors then vote for president and vice president. Although electors are pledged to their candidate and running mate, they are not obligated to vote for them. An elector who votes for someone other than his or her candidate is known as a faithless elector.

The electors of each state and the District of Columbia met on December 18, 2000^[6] to cast their votes for president and vice president. The Electoral College itself never meets as one body. Instead the electors from each state and the District of Columbia met in their respective capitols.

The following were the members of the Electoral College from the state. All were pledged to and voted for George W. Bush and Dick Cheney:^{[7] [8]}

1. Bob Beauprez
2. Marcy Benson
3. Robert Dieter
4. Mary Hergert
5. Robert Martinez
6. Ralph Nagel
7. Lilly Nunez
8. Joe Rogers

Notes and References

1. Web site: Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections 2000 - San Miguel County, CO. January 7, 2013.
2. Web site: Statewide Precinct Detail. 11 June 2019. State of Hawaii Office of Elections.
3. Sullivan, Robert David; ‘How the Red and Blue Map Evolved Over the Past Century’; America Magazine in The National Catholic Review; June 29, 2016
4. Web site: Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections 2000 - Colorado. January 7, 2013.
5. Web site: Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - County Data.
6. Web site: 2000 Post-Election Timeline of Events.
7. Web site: President Elect - 2000 . 2009-10-25 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120212174238/http://presidentelect.org/e2000.html . 2012-02-12 . dead .
8. Web site: Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections - Presidential Electors.