Colo. Rev. Stat. § 1-4-801 (2026)

(1) Candidates for political party nominations to be made by primary election may be placed on the primary election ballot by petition. Every petition to nominate candidates for a primary election shall state the name of the office for which the person is a candidate and the candidate's name and address and shall designate in not more than three words the name of the political party which the candidate represents. No petition shall contain the name of more than one person for the same office. (2) The signature requirements for the petition are as follows: (a) Every petition in the case of a candidate for any county office must be signed by electors eligible to vote within the county commissioner district or political subdivision for which the officer is to be elected. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2)(e) of this section, the petition requires the lesser of one thousand signers or signers equal in number to ten percent of the votes cast in the political subdivision at the contested or uncontested primary election for the political party's candidate for the office for which the petition is being circulated or, if there was no primary election, at the last preceding general election for which there was a candidate for the office. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an unaffiliated elector is not eligible to sign a petition for a candidate of a major political party. (a.5) Every petition in the case of a candidate for a member of the United States house of representatives, member of the state board of education for a congressional district, or member of the board of regents of the university of Colorado for a congressional district must be signed by eligible electors resident within the district for which the officer is to be elected. The petition requires the lesser of one thousand five hundred signers or signers equal in number to ten percent of the votes cast in the district at the contested or uncontested primary election for the political party's candidate for the office for which the petition is being circulated or, if there was no primary election, at the last preceding general election for which there was a candidate for the office. (b) Every petition in the case of a candidate for member of the general assembly or any district office greater than a county office must be signed by eligible electors resident within the district for which the officer is to be elected. The petition requires the lesser of one thousand signers or signers equal to thirty percent of the votes cast in the district at the contested or uncontested primary election for the political party's candidate for the office for which the petition is being circulated or, if there was no primary election, at the last preceding general election for which there was a candidate for the office. (b.5) Every petition in the case of a candidate for the office of district attorney must be signed by eligible electors resident within the district for which the officer is to be elected. The petition requires the lesser of one thousand signers or signers equal in number to ten percent of the votes cast in the district at the contested or uncontested primary election for the political party's candidate for the office for which the petition is being circulated or, if there was no primary election, at the last preceding general election for which there was a candidate for the office. (c) (I) Repealed. (II) Every petition in the case of a candidate for the office of governor or the office of United States senator must be signed by at least one thousand five hundred eligible electors in each congressional district. (c.5) Every petition in the case of a candidate for the office of secretary of state, attorney general, or state treasurer must be signed by at least one thousand eligible electors in each congressional district. (c.7) Every petition in the case of a candidate for the office of an at-large seat on either the state board of education or the board of regents of the university of Colorado must be signed by at least five hundred eligible electors in each congressional district. (d) (Deleted by amendment, L. 93, p. 1405, § 29, effective July 1, 1993.) (e) Where the electors of the county have voted to increase the membership of the board of county commissioners from three to five pursuant to section 30-10-306.5, C.R.S., or to decrease the membership of the board from five to three pursuant to section 30-10-306.7, C.R.S., for the next two primary elections immediately following an election at which the voters have approved the change in the membership of the board, the signature requirements for the petition are as follows: (I) Where any one or more commissioners to be elected to the board of county commissioners will be voted on by voters of the whole county, every petition must require signers equal in number to twenty percent of the average of all votes cast in each commissioner district in the county during the prior two contested or uncontested primary elections for the political party's candidates in each county commissioner district that held a primary election in either of those elections. If no primary election was held in either year, the calculation must be based on the most recent preceding general election for which the party had a candidate on the ballot, and every petition must require signers equal in number to twenty percent of the average of all votes cast for the political party's candidates for commissioner in each commissioner district in which the party had a candidate on the ballot. (II) Where any one or more commissioners to be elected to the board of county commissioners will be voted on only by the electors residing in a particular county commissioner district, the determination of the required number of signers must begin with a calculation of the average of all votes cast in each commissioner district in the county during the prior two contested or uncontested primary elections for the political party's candidates in the county commissioner districts that held a primary election in either of those elections. Upon a determination of the average, that number must then be divided by the total number of commissioner districts in the county where commissioners are voted on only by the electors residing in the district, whether three or five. After completing this calculation, every petition must require signers equal in number to twenty percent of the number realized. If no primary election was held in either year, the calculation must be based on the most recent preceding general election for which the party had a candidate on the ballot, and every petition must require signers equal in number to the following calculation: (A) Twenty percent of the average of all votes cast for the political party's candidates for commissioner in each commissioner district in which the party had a candidate on the ballot; and (B) Divide the number found in sub-subparagraph (A) of this subparagraph (II) by the total number of commissioner districts in the county where commissioners are voted on only by the electors residing in the district, whether three or five. (f) Following the first two primary elections that are conducted after a change in the membership of the board of county commissioners pursuant to section 30-10-306.5 or 30-10- 306.7, C.R.S., in accordance with the requirements of paragraph (e) of this subsection (2), the signature requirements for a petition for a county commissioner candidate who is affiliated with a major political party must follow the procedures specified in paragraph (a) of this subsection (2). (3) No person shall be placed in nomination by petition on behalf of any political party unless the person was affiliated with the political party, as shown in the statewide voter registration system, no later than the first business day of the January immediately preceding the election for which the person desires to be placed in nomination. (4) No person who attempted and failed to receive at least ten percent of the votes for the nomination of a political party assembly for a particular office shall be placed in nomination by petition on behalf of the political party for the same office. (5) (a) Party petitions shall not be circulated nor any signatures be obtained prior to the first business day in January. Petitions must be filed no later than the close of business on the third Tuesday in March, or on the seventy-fifth day after the first business day in January, whichever is later. (b) Repealed. (6) A candidate for a presidential primary election shall not begin circulating petitions before the first Monday in November of the year preceding the year in which the presidential primary election is held. A candidate must file a petition no later than the close of business on the eighty-fifth day before the date of the presidential primary election.

Source: L. 92: Entire part R&RE, p. 684, § 7, effective January 1, 1993. L. 93: (2) amended, p. 1405, § 29, effective July 1. L. 98: (2)(a) to (2)(c) amended, p. 634, § 6, effective May 6. L. 99: (5) amended, p. 764, § 24, effective May 20. L. 2000: (1) amended, p. 2029, § 5, effective August 2. L. 2005: (5) amended, p. 1399, § 16, effective June 6; (5) amended, p. 1434, § 16, effective June 6. L. 2010: (3) amended, (HB 10-1271), ch. 324, p. 1502, § 4, effective May 27. L. 2011: (5) amended, (SB 11-189), ch. 243, p. 1064, § 9, effective May 27. L. 2013: (2)(a) amended and (2)(e) and (2)(f) added, (SB 13-243), ch. 268, p. 1410, § 1, effective May 24. L. 2016: (3) amended, (SB 16-142), ch. 173, p. 576, § 30, effective May 18. Initiated 2016: (6) added, Proposition 107, effective upon proclamation of the Governor, December 27, 2016. See L. 2017, p. 2820. L. 2017: (5) amended, (SB 17-209), ch. 234, p. 946, § 2, effective August 9. L. 2018: (2)(a) amended, (SB 18-233), ch. 262, p. 1607, § 10, effective May 29. L. 2019: (2)(a), (2)(b), (2)(c)(II), and (6) amended and (2)(a.5), (2)(b.5), (2)(c.5), and (2)(c.7) added, (HB 19- 1278), ch. 326, p. 3011, § 18, effective August 2. L. 2020: (5) amended, (HB 20-1359), ch. 23, p. 85, § 6, effective March 16. L. 2021: (5)(a) and (6) amended, (SB 21-250), ch. 282, p. 1640, § 17, effective June 21. L. 2024: (5)(a) amended, (HB 24-1067), ch. 51, p. 180, § 3, effective August 7.

Editor's note: (1) The provisions of this section are similar to several former provisions of § 1-4-603 as they existed prior to 1992. For a detailed comparison, see the comparative tables located in the back of the index. (2) Subsection (2)(c)(I)(B) provided for the repeal of subsection (2)(c)(I), effective January 1, 1999. (See L. 98, p. 634.) (3) This section was amended by initiative in 2016. The vote count on Proposition 107 at the general election held November 8, 2016, was as follows: FOR: 1,701,599 AGAINST: 953,246 (4) Subsection (5)(b)(II) provided for the repeal of subsection (5)(b), effective December 31, 2020. (See L. 2020, p. 85.)

Cross references: (1) For the declaration of the people of Colorado in Proposition 107, see section 1 on p. 2815, Session Laws of Colorado 2017. For the legislative declaration in HB 24-1067, see section 1 of chapter 51, Session Laws of Colorado 2024. (2) For the short title ("Colorado Votes Act") in HB 19-1278, see section 1 of chapter 326, Session Laws of Colorado 2019.

1-4-802. Petitions for nominating minor political party and unaffiliated candidates for a partisan office. (1) Candidates for partisan public offices to be filled at a general or congressional vacancy election who do not wish to affiliate with a major political party may be nominated, other than by a primary election or a convention, in the following manner: (a) A petition for nominating minor political party or unaffiliated candidates shall be prepared, indicating the name and address of any candidate for the office to be filled. The petition shall indicate the name of the minor political party or designate in not more than three words the political or other name selected by the signers to identify an unaffiliated candidate. No name of any political party shall be used, in whole or in part, to identify an unaffiliated candidate. (b) Each petition must contain only the name of one candidate for one office; except that any petition for a candidate for president of the United States must also include a candidate for vice president, and a candidate for governor must also include a candidate for lieutenant governor, and together they shall be considered joint candidates at the general election. In the case of nominations for president and vice president of the United States, the joint candidates shall submit a list of presidential electors endorsed by the electors, and the names of the presidential electors must be added to the petition. (c) Every petition for the office of president and vice president, for statewide office, for congressional district office, for the office of member of the general assembly, for district attorney, and for county office must be signed by eligible electors residing within the district or political subdivision in which the officer is to be elected. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2) of this section, the number of signatures of eligible electors on a petition is as follows: (I) At least one thousand five hundred in each congressional district for the office of president and vice president; (II) (A) At least one thousand in each congressional district for the offices of governor, secretary of state, attorney general, or treasurer, or the office of United States senator; (B) At least five hundred in each congressional district for the office of an at-large seat on either the state board of education or the board of regents of the university of Colorado; (III) The lesser of one thousand five hundred or two and one-half percent of the votes cast in the congressional district in the most recent general election for the office of member of the United States house of representatives, member of the state board of education for a congressional district, or member of the board of regents of the university of Colorado for a congressional district; (IV) The lesser of one thousand or three and one-third percent of the votes cast in the senate district in the most recent general election for the office of member of the state senate; (V) The lesser of one thousand or five percent of votes cast in the house district in the most recent general election for the office of member of the state house of representatives; (VI) The lesser of one thousand or three percent of the votes cast in the district in the most recent general election for the office of district attorney; and (VII) The lesser of one thousand or two percent of the votes cast for all candidates for that office in the most recent general election for any county office. (d) (I) No petition to nominate an unaffiliated candidate, except petitions for candidates for vacancies to unexpired terms of representatives in congress, shall be circulated or any signatures obtained thereon earlier than one hundred seventy-three days before the general election. (II) [Editor's note: This version of subsection (1)(d)(II) is effective until January 1, 2025.] No petition to nominate a minor political party candidate shall be circulated nor any signatures obtained thereon earlier than the first Monday in February in the general election year. (II) [Editor's note: This version of subsection (1)(d)(II) is effective January 1, 2025.] No petition to nominate a minor political party candidate shall be circulated nor any signatures obtained thereon earlier than the first business day in January in the general election year. (e) The petition to nominate an unaffiliated candidate may designate or appoint upon its face one or more unaffiliated registered electors as a committee to fill vacancies in accordance with section 1-4-1008. However, in the case of a petition for the office of state senator or state representative, the petition shall designate or appoint upon its face three or more unaffiliated registered electors as a committee to fill vacancies in accordance with sections 1-4-1008 and 1- 12-203. (f) (I) Except as provided in subsection (1)(f)(II) of this section, petitions must be filed no later than 5 p.m. on the one hundred seventeenth day before the general election or, for a congressional vacancy election, no later than 5 p.m. on the twentieth day after the date of the order issued by the governor. (II) [Editor's note: This version of subsection (1)(f)(II) is effective until January 1, 2025.] Petitions to nominate candidates of minor political parties must be filed no later than the close of business on the eighty-fifth day before the primary election as specified in section 1-4- 101. (II) [Editor's note: This version of subsection (1)(f)(II) is effective January 1, 2025.] Petitions to nominate candidates of minor political parties must be filed no later than 5 p.m. on the third Tuesday in March or on the seventy-fifth day after the first business day in January, whichever is later. (g) (I) For congressional vacancy elections, no person shall be placed in nomination by petition unless the person is an eligible elector and was registered as affiliated with a minor political party or as unaffiliated, as shown in the statewide voter registration system, for at least twelve months prior to the last date the petition may be filed. (II) For general elections, no person shall be placed in nomination by petition unless the person is an eligible elector of the political subdivision or district in which the officer is to be elected and unless the person was registered as affiliated with a minor political party or as unaffiliated, as shown in the statewide voter registration system, no later than the first business day of the January immediately preceding the general election for which the person desires to be placed in nomination; except that, if such nomination is for a nonpartisan election, the person shall be an eligible elector of the political subdivision or district and be a registered elector, as shown in the statewide voter registration system, on the date of the earliest signature on the petition. This section does not apply to candidates seeking the office of president of the United States. (2) Where the electors of the county have voted to increase the membership of the board of county commissioners from three to five pursuant to section 30-10-306.5, C.R.S., or to decrease the membership of the board from five to three pursuant to section 30-10-306.7, C.R.S., for the next two general elections immediately following an election at which the voters have approved a change in the membership of the board, the signature requirements for the petition to select candidates who do not wish to affiliate with a major political party are as follows: (a) Where any one or more commissioners to be elected to the board of county commissioners will be voted on by voters of the whole county, every petition must require signers equal in number to the lesser of either seven hundred fifty signers or two percent of the average of all votes cast in each county commissioner district for which there was a race on the ballot during the most recent general election; (b) Where any one or more commissioners to be elected to the board of county commissioners will be voted on only by the electors residing in a particular county commissioner district, every petition must require signers equal in number to the lesser of either: (I) Seven hundred fifty signers; or (II) The number realized by first determining two percent of the average of all votes cast in each county commissioner district for which there was a race on the ballot during the most recent general election, and then dividing that number by the total number of commissioner districts in the county where commissioners are voted on only by the electors residing in a district, whether three or five. (3) Following the first two general elections that are conducted after a change in the membership of the board of county commissioners pursuant to section 30-10-306.5 or 30-10- 306.7, C.R.S., the signature requirements for a petition for a county commissioner candidate who does not wish to affiliate with a major political party must follow the procedures specified in subparagraph (VI) of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section. Source: L. 92: Entire part R&RE, p. 685, § 7, effective January 1, 1993. L. 95: (1)(a), (1)(c), (1)(d), (1)(e), (1)(f), and (1)(g) amended, pp. 861, 885, 830, §§ 116, 2, 29, effective July 1. L. 96: IP(1) amended, p. 1739, § 21, effective July 1. L. 99: (1)(d) and (1)(f) amended, p. 764, § 25, effective May 20. L. 2003: IP(1), (1)(a), (1)(d), (1)(e), (1)(f), and (1)(g) amended, p. 1310, § 7, effective April 22. L. 2005: (1)(d) and (1)(f) amended, p. 1399, § 17, effective June 6; (1)(d) and (1)(f) amended, p. 1434, § 17, effective June 6. L. 2010: (1)(g) amended, (HB 10-1271), ch. 324, p. 1503, § 5, effective May 27. L. 2011: (1)(d) and (1)(f) amended, (SB 11-189), ch. 243, p. 1064, § 10, effective May 27. L. 2012: (1)(b), (1)(d)(I), and (1)(f)(I) amended, (HB 12-1292), ch. 181, p. 680, § 13, effective May 17. L. 2013: IP(1)(c) amended and (2) and (3) added, (SB 13-243), ch. 268, p. 1411, § 2, effective May 24. L. 2016: (1)(g) amended, (SB 16-142), ch. 173, p. 576, § 31, effective May 18. L. 2017: (1)(e) amended, (SB 17-209), ch. 234, p. 962, § 8, effective August 9. L. 2019: (1)(c) amended, (HB 19-1278), ch. 326, p. 3012, § 19, effective August 2. L. 2021: (1)(b) and (1)(f)(II) amended, (SB 21-250), ch. 282, p. 1640, § 18, effective June 21. L. 2024: (1)(d), (1)(f), and (1)(g)(II) amended, (SB 24-210), ch. 468, p. 3244, § 10, effective June 6 (see editor's note).

Editor's note: (1) This section is similar to former § 1-4-801 as it existed prior to 1992. (2) Section 61 of chapter 468, Session Laws of Colorado 2024, provides that amendments to subsections (1)(d)(II) and (1)(f)(II) by SB 24-210 take effect on January 1, 2025, and the remainder of the act changing this section takes effect on June 6, 2024.

Cross references: (1) For filling vacancies in a nomination for an unaffiliated candidate, see § 1-4-1002 (4) and (5). (2) For the short title ("Colorado Votes Act") in HB 19-1278, see section 1 of chapter 326, Session Laws of Colorado 2019.