Colorado's congressional delegations
Since Colorado became a U.S. state in 1876, it has sent congressional delegations to the United States Senate and United States [House of Representatives], beginning with the 44th [United States Congress]. Prior to statehood, the Colorado Territory sent non-voting delegates to the House of Representatives from 1861 to 1876. Each state elects two senators to serve for six years, and members of the House to two-year terms. Each state elects two senators to serve for six years in general elections, with their re-election staggered. Prior to the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment to the [United States Constitution|Seventeenth Amendment] in 1913, senators were elected by the Colorado General Assembly. Each state elects a varying number of, but at least one, member of the House, depending on population, to two-year terms. Colorado has sent eight members to the House in each congressional delegation since the 2020 United States Census.
A total of 80 people have served Colorado in the House and 37 have served Colorado in the Senate. The first of seven women to serve Colorado in Congress was Pat Schroeder, who served in the House from 1973 to 1996. The first and only African-American to have served Colorado in Congress is Joe Neguse.
The current dean, or longest-serving member, of the Colorado delegation is Representative Diana DeGette of the, who has served in the House since 1997. She is the second-longest serving member of Congress in Colorado history, only behind Edward T. Taylor, who served in the House from 1909 to 1941. Henry M. Teller, who served more than 30 years in the Senate, is the longest-serving senator in Colorado history.
Current delegation
Colorado's current congressional delegation to the consists of two senators, both of whom are Democrats, and eight representatives comprising four Democrats and four Republicans.The state of Colorado gained an beginning in 2023. The current dean of the Colorado delegation is Representative Diana DeGette of the, who has served in the House since 1997.
The Cook Partisan Voting Index is a measure of how strongly partisan a state is. It measures the party leaning and the number of percentage points more partisan than the national average. For instance, R+4 would mean the state voted four percentage points more Republican than the national average. As of 2025, the CPVI ranked Colorado's 1st, 2nd, 6th, and 7th districts as leaning Democratic, and the 3rd, 4th, and 5th districts as leaning Republican. The 8th district is ranked as even. As a state, Colorado is ranked as leaning Democratic, with a score of D+6.
United States SenateTwo senators from Colorado, Henry M. Teller and Ken Salazar, have also served as the United States Secretary of the Interior, under the Arthur administration and Obama administration respectively. Salazar is currently serving as the United States ambassador to Mexico under the Biden administration. Many senators from Colorado, including John F. Shafroth and Edwin C. Johnson, also served as the governor of Colorado. Some have also been at the forefront of national politics during their careers, including Eugene Millikin, who served as the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, and Gary Hart, who finished second in the 1984 Democratic Party presidential primaries and was considered a frontrunner in the 1988 Democratic Party presidential primaries.Senators are elected every six years depending on their class, with each senator serving a six-year term, and elections for senators occurring every two years, rotating through each class such that each election, around one-third of the seats in the Senate are up for election. Colorado's senators are elected in classes II and III. Currently, Colorado is represented in the Senate by Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper. United States House of RepresentativesMany representatives from Colorado have played important roles in the House of Representatives, including by chairing congressional committees. For instance, Wayne N. Aspinall chaired the United States House Committee on Natural Resources from 1959 to 1973, and Edward T. Taylor chaired the United States House Committee on Appropriations for more than three terms. Taylor was also influential in the passing of the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934, which is named after him. Others took on important roles later in their careers, such as John F. Shafroth, who later became the governor of Colorado and a senator from Colorado known for his influence over the passing of the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. Seven women have served Colorado in the House, the first being Pat Schroeder, and the first and only African-American to have served Colorado in the House is Joe Neguse.Each district uses a popular vote to elect a member of Colorado's delegation in the House of Representatives. Districts are redrawn every ten years, after data from the US Census is collected. From 1861 to 1876, Colorado sent a non-voting delegate to the House of Representatives; when it became a state in 1876, it had one seat in the House. Since then, its representation in the House has grown along with its population. Since 2023, Colorado has had eight congressional districts drawn according to the results of the 2020 United States Census. 1861–1876: 1 non-voting delegateStarting on August 19, 1861, the Territory of Colorado sent a non-voting delegate to the House.1876–1893: 1 seatFollowing statehood on August 1, 1876, the state of Colorado was apportioned one seat in the House.1893–1903: 2 seatsFollowing the 1890 census, Colorado was apportioned two seats.1903–1913: 3 seatsFollowing the 1900 census, Colorado was apportioned three seats.1913–1973: 4 seatsFollowing the 1910 census, Colorado was apportioned four seats.1973–1983: 5 seatsFollowing the 1970 census, Colorado was apportioned five seats.1983–2003: 6 seatsFollowing the 1980 census, Colorado was apportioned six seats.2003–2023: 7 seatsFollowing the 2000 census, Colorado was apportioned seven seats.2023–present: 8 seatsSince the 2020 census, Colorado has been apportioned eight seats. |