The two candidates easily won their respective nominations in Tuesday’s primary election, each defeating three rivals with campaigns that appealed to the party’s most ardent supporters.
Polis, a five-term Boulder congressman, would become the nation’s first openly gay man elected governor if he succeeds, and his win Tuesday represents a sharp leftward shift that will test whether Colorado is a true blue state.
Stapleton, the two-term state treasurer and Bush family relative, is competing to become only the second Republican elected governor in 44 years and aligned himself with Republican firebrands to win the race.
