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Colorado Municipal League releases spring municipal election preview
DENVER, COLO. – Monday, March 9, 2026 – On April 7, voters in at least 75 cities and towns across Colorado will consider local candidates and/or ballot measures in municipal elections. Of the spring elections, four are special elections, including one in the City of Greeley that occurred on Feb. 24. Over 40 municipal ballot issues and questions will be considered across the state. At least 52 municipalities canceled their regular elections.
Ballot measures being considered by voters include:
Tax issues
Sales and use tax increases will be considered in:
- Ault – for street improvements and maintenance
- Hugo – for town pool maintenance and operation, as well as recreation and cultural programming and facilities
- Johnstown – for open space, trails, and parks
- Platteville – for economic development, downtown improvements, and recreational amenities
Lodging tax increases will be on the ballot in:
- Burlington – for tourism promotion
- Fairplay – for community projects, capital improvements, and visitor impacts
Other tax and fee issues include:
- Hugo – asking voters for authorization to expand authorized use of existing sales tax to include all aspects of street maintenance
- Platteville – seeking voter approval to waive the 5.25% property tax limit for the 2026 property tax year and all future years
Revenue retention and debt
- Arriba – asking voters for authority to retain and spend all excess revenues collected from sales tax approved by voters in 2024
- Bennett – to increase debt $20 million for road construction and improvements to be paid by existing sales tax revenue
- Pagosa Springs – to increase debt up to $3 million to repair damage from October 2025 floods, to be repaid out of the general fund
Charter and code amendments
- Cortez – four charter amendments to update charter language, make clarifications, and remove non-existent departments; clarify qualifications, duties, and compensation for councilmembers, the city manager, and city attorney; update the location of city council meetings and virtual participation; and, allow the city council to enact alternative term limits
- Dillon – seven charter amendments to eliminate requirements for council meeting frequency to allow scheduling flexibility; designate the town website as the official posting; allow appropriations by resolution instead of ordinance; allow leases of town property by resolution; allow utility rates to be set by resolution; allow an act that directly burdens or limits the use of private property to occur by resolution; and, modernize charter language
- Pagosa Springs – to align maximum municipal jail sentences with maximums permitted by state law
- Windsor – six charter amendments repealing a section to reduce confusion; clarifying definitions; removing outdated information; aligning executive session processes with Colorado statutes; modernizing affidavit of publication requirements; and updating disclosure and recusal requirements
- Woodland Park – to amend city code related to elected official compensation; update charter to correct drafting errors; and update charter to allow more time for an incumbent to resign before a recall election
Publication requirements
- Dinosaur – to allow publication of ordinances by title only, with a full copy available at Town Hall
Election changes
- Four statutory municipalities – Del Norte, Dinosaur, Eaton, and Frederick – have measures to move town elections from April to November of even-numbered years
Term limits
- Del Norte – to establish term limits of two consecutive four-year terms
Land use
- Berthoud – a referendum asking whether an ordinance that rezoned a property from a Planned Unit Development (PUD) to suburban commercial and suburban residential should take effect
- Berthoud – an initiated measure to limit the density of residential development in certain areas
- Julesburg – to allow the keeping of hens in residential zoning districts
- Lakewood – four referenda to repeal 2025 ordinances amending the zoning code
Other
- Englewood (April 7), to fill a council seat
- Greeley (Feb. 24), voters approved a referendum to repeal an ordinance that authorized zoning for a PUD
Akron and Lone Tree hold their municipal elections in May of even years. Both elections will ask voters to weigh in on candidates.
Not all ballots were available at the time of publication. Any ballot questions not included in this press release will be included in the post-election summary. The Colorado Municipal League (CML) thanks municipal clerks who assisted CML staff in compiling this information.
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Colorado Municipal League (CML) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization established in 1923 and represents the interests of 271 cities and towns. For more information on CML, please visit cml.org, call 303-831-6411, or stay connected on Facebook, X, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Contact(s):
Kevin Bommer, executive director, kbommer@cml.org
Maeve McHugh, municipal research analyst, mmchugh@cml.org