Colorado's 6th congressional district explained

State:Colorado
District Number:6
Image Caption:Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023
Representative:Jason Crow
Party:Democratic
Residence:Aurora
Distribution Ref:[1]
Percent Urban:98.51
Percent Rural:1.49
Population:718,693[2]
Population Year:2022
Median Income:$91,725[3]
Percent White:55.8
Percent Hispanic:22.1
Percent Black:10.0
Percent Asian:6.0
Percent More Than One Race:4.9
Percent Other Race:1.2
Cpvi:D+9[4]

Colorado's 6th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Colorado. Located in central Colorado, the district encompasses much of the eastern part of the Denver metropolitan area, including all of Aurora, as well as portions of the southern (Centennial and Littleton) and northern metro area (Brighton and Henderson).

The district is currently represented by Democrat Jason Crow.

The district was created in 1983 as a result of the redistricting cycle after the 1980 census, and was originally a classic suburban Republican bastion; this was once the safest seat for Colorado Republicans outside of Colorado Springs. However, changing demographics in the Front Range, especially in Arapahoe County which went from a traditional conservative suburban/exurban stronghold to a densely populated, ethnically and culturally diverse Democratic-leaning inner suburban county, has made suburban Denver much friendlier to Democrats. The 2010 redistricting shifted the more rural, GOP-dominated sections of the district to the nearby 4th and added heavily populated and Democratic parts of Aurora, turning the 6th district into a Democratic-leaning swing district. However, Republicans are still competitive downballot, and the Democratic strength was limited to western Arapahoe County for much of its history, as the components of Douglas County and Adams County in the 6th were still Republican leaning: this changed in 2020, as Joe Biden and Representative Jason Crow won all county areas in the district.

After 2020 redistricting, the 6th became a purely inner suburban district anchored in western Arapahoe County, although small parts of Jefferson, Douglas, and Adams Counties were included as well to completely take in the cities of Littleton and Aurora.

History

1990s

Following the 1990 U.S. census and associated realignment of Colorado congressional districts, the 6th congressional district consisted of portions of Arapahoe and Jefferson counties.

2000s

Following the 2000 U.S. census and associated realignment of Colorado congressional districts, the 6th congressional district consisted of Douglas and Elbert counties as well as portions of Arapahoe, Jefferson, and Park counties.

2010s

See also: 2010 United States redistricting cycle. During the 2010 Colorado Redistricting, the 6th congressional district lost most of its previous area; the district now consisted of the western portions of Arapahoe and Adams counties plus the community of Highlands Ranch in Douglas County and a very little part of Jefferson County.

2020s

See also: 2020 United States redistricting cycle. During the 2020 Colorado Redistricting, the 6th congressional district became a pure inner-suburban district consisting of western Arapahoe County, the portions of the City of Aurora located in Adams and Douglas counties, as well as parts of Jefferson County bordering Littleton near Highway 470.

Characteristics

Suburban in character, this ethnically and economically diverse district takes in Denver's southern and eastern suburbs and is now fairly Democratic, despite historically being a Republican district.

Aurora, a diverse city with 21% foreign-born residents [5] makes up the base of the population: while the city generally votes to the left and is a suburban stronghold for Colorado Democrats, it also provided enough support for Republican Mike Coffman to hold the district for a decade.

The suburbs to Denver's south side in the district are a mixed bag - Greenwood Village and Cherry Hills Village have a large amount of registered Republicans, however the Republicans here are mainly economically conservative and much more moderate socially compared to the rest of the state. Centennial and Littleton tend to be swing cities due to a demographic mix - while southern Littleton and eastern Centennial tend to be highly wealthy and lean slightly Republican, northern Littleton and western/central Centennial have a large lower to middle-class population that leans Democratic. Englewood and Sheridan, being closer socially and economically to nearby Denver are safe for the Democrats, however they do not make up a large part of the district's population.

Composition

CountySeatPopulation
1AdamsBrighton533,365
5ArapahoeLittleton655,808
31DenverDenver713,252
35DouglasCastle Rock383,906
59JeffersonLittleton576,366

Cities of 10,000 people or more

2,500 – 10,000 people

Voting

Election results from presidential races[6]

Election results from presidential races
YearOfficeResults
2000PresidentBush 60–37%
2004PresidentBush 60–39%
2008PresidentMcCain 53–46%
2012PresidentObama 52–47%
2016PresidentClinton 50–41%
2020PresidentBiden 58–39%

List of members representing the district

Representative
PartyYearsCong
ress(es)
Electoral historywidth=350 District location
District created January 3, 1983
VacantJanuary 3, 1983 –
March 29, 1983
Representative-elect Jack Swigert died December 27, 1982.[7] 1983–1993
Parts of Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, and Jefferson

Daniel Schaefer
RepublicanMarch 29, 1983 –
January 3, 1999
Elected to finish Swigert's term.
Re-elected in 1984.
Re-elected in 1986.
Re-elected in 1988.
Re-elected in 1990.
Re-elected in 1992.
Re-elected in 1994.
Re-elected in 1996.
Retired.
1993–2003
Parts of Arapahoe and Jefferson

Tom Tancredo
RepublicanJanuary 3, 1999 –
January 3, 2009
Elected in 1998.
Re-elected in 2000.
Re-elected in 2002.
Re-elected in 2004.
Re-elected in 2006.
Retired.
2003–2013

Douglas and Elbert; parts of Arapahoe, Jefferson, and Park

Mike Coffman
RepublicanJanuary 3, 2009 –
January 3, 2019
Elected in 2008.
Re-elected in 2010.
Re-elected in 2012.
Re-elected in 2014.
Re-elected in 2016.
Lost re-election.
2013–2023

Parts of Adams, Arapahoe, and Douglas

Jason Crow
January 3, 2019 –
present
Elected in 2018.
Re-elected in 2020.
Re-elected in 2022.
2023–present

Parts of Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas, and Jefferson

Election results

align=center 1982 • 1983 (Special) • 1984 • 1986 • 1988 • 1990 • 1992 • 1994 • 1996 • 1998 • 2000 • 2002 • 2004 • 2006 • 2008 • 2010 • 2012 • 2014 • 2016 • 2018 • 2020 • 2022

2008

General election

2022

Historical district boundaries

See also

References

39.755°N -104.7653°W

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Congressional Districts Relationship Files (State-based) . . April 2, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130402141525/http://www.census.gov/geo/maps-data/data/cd_state.html . dead.
  2. Web site: My Congressional District.
  3. Web site: My Congressional District.
  4. Web site: 2022 Cook PVI: District Map and List. 2023-01-10. Cook Political Report. en.
  5. Web site: Frank . John . By the numbers: Aurora's population and diversity . axios.com . 26 February 2023.
  6. http://www.swingstateproject.com/diary/4161/ Presidential Election Results, by district
  7. News: Ex-Astronaut, Newly Elected to House, Dies. The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. December 29, 1982. Newspapers.com. 12D. Associated Press.