U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman on Tuesday was on track to defeat well-funded and aggressive Democratic challenger Andrew Romanoff to represent some Denver suburbs in Congress.
With about 70 percent of estimated votes counted in the 6th Congressional District as of 9:40 p.m., Coffman was leading Romanoff 53 percent to 42 percent — a wider margin than many analysts expected.
The 6th Congressional District, centered in Aurora, also includes several suburbs north and south of Denver.
Coffman, who earlier served as the Colorado secretary of state, the treasurer and a state legislator, will serve a fourth term in Congress.
“Let us now move forward, past this election,” he told Republican supporters at the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center hotel. “Past the tough debates and past those miserable 30-second ads.”
The hypercompetitive race long had been seen as Colorado’s only likely toss-up among congressional contests. National media noticed that in addition to attracting huge sums of money, the race featured possibly the two hardest-working House candidates anywhere.
Just months ago, the race was seen by some observers as one Coffman would lose, the final nail in the coffin after the conservative Republican barely won re-election two years ago in a drastically redrawn district. The formerly very conservative district had a nearly even three-way split of registered Republicans, Democrats and unaffiliated voters under a Democrat-drawn map in 2011.
And yet, despite the district’s dynamics and a vigorous campaign lodged for 21 months by the ambitious Romanoff, Coffman seemingly managed to stay a step ahead.
He moderated his positions on a host of issues, including immigration, gay rights and abortion, in sometimes-awkward shifts that nonetheless increased his appeal.
He also learned to speak Spanish — and to even debate in the language — to reach out to a more diverse district loaded with Latinos, especially in Aurora.
Coffman, 59, gave a nod to Asian and Latino immigrant communities in his acceptance speech, some of it delivered in Spanish.
“I look forward to working with you to achieve the American dream,” Coffman said.
He also addressed his opponent in a race that reached a fever pitch of combativeness at times. “To my opponent Andrew Romanoff, thank you for running,” he said. “This has been a very tough race, and I am a better candidate for it.”
Speaking to his supporters later Tuesday, Romanoff, a 48-year-old former Colorado House speaker, congratulated Coffman. Romanoff’s gathering was at Moe’s Original Bar B Que restaurant in Aurora.
“Someone once said victory has a thousand fathers, but failure is an orphan,” said Romanoff, drawing on his trademark wit. “I know my mother has always wanted a grandchild, so let me claim paternity for this defeat.”
Against Democrats’ well-honed get-out-the-vote program, Coffman’s campaign in recent days touted an aggressive strategy that targeted occasional Republican voters to rally behind him.
The remaining question before Tuesday was whether Romanoff — who raised $4.8 million to Coffman’s $4.4 million through Oct. 15 — would become the first Democrat to beat Coffman or the latest to underestimate him.
Coffman, a sometimes-brusque Army and Marine Corps veteran, “doesn’t have the Cory Gardner smile or the same kind of charisma,” said Katy Atkinson, a Denver political consultant, comparing him to the Republican congressman who challenged U.S. Sen. Mark Udall on Tuesday.
“But he’s got the retail politician skills. He’s just so good,” she said, referring to making personal contact with voters.
“I think what we’re seeing so far, in terms of how well he’s doing in his redrawn district, is evidence of his skill,” Atkinson said, from making inroads with some immigrant groups to connecting with the district’s many veterans.
Also running were Libertarian Party candidate Norm Olsen and Green Party candidate Gary Swing, both polling in the low-single digits.
Jeremy White, who works in downtown Littleton, voted for Coffman. He moved to Colorado recently from Florida.
“I am a registered Democrat,” he said, but added that the party has rubbed him the wrong way. “They’re too liberal.”
The race that some Democrats once hoped would be Romanoff’s to lose didn’t pan out in his favor.
Romanoff seized on Coffman’s position shifts and questioned his motives, painting him as a far-right conservative in sheep’s clothing. He was aided by outside groups and Democratic committees who ran ads against Coffman for months.
But Coffman put up a fight. Aside from rebutting Romanoff’s attacks, he pointed to instances in which he has crossed the aisle to work with Democrats on a variety of issues, especially involving the military and veterans.
And in recent days, his campaign touted its heavy targeting of occasional Republican voters to rally behind Coffman.
“This is a microcosm of the year for the Democratic Party nationally,” said Eric Sondermann, a Denver-based political analyst. “They started with big talk and strong intent. Romanoff was their prize recruit anywhere in the country. …
“And then, as the year got tougher and tougher for all Democrats, it also got tougher for Andrew Romanoff.”
Jon Murray: 303-954-1405, jmurray@denverpost.com or twitter.com/JonMurray
Staff writers David Olinger, John Ingold, Laura Keeney and Elizabeth Hernandez contributed to this report.
Mike Coffman (R)53%Andrew Romanoff (D)42%Norm Olsen (L)2%Gary Swing (Green)3%As of 9:40 p.m. Tuesday
