Garfield County, Colorado is an important hub of politics in the state. The county is comprised of many cities and towns, each with its own elected representatives and influencers who shape the political landscape of the area. The county commission is responsible for overseeing many aspects of local governance and has been led by strong advocates for public services, economic development, property rights, and environmental protection. In addition to the efforts of elected officials and community leaders, Garfield County also benefits from a wide variety of political interest groups that seek to make their voices heard about issues that affect life in the county. Political engagement among residents is high; in 2020, nearly 80% of registered voters participated in the general election. This level of civic participation helps ensure that Garfield County remains a vibrant center of political activity in Colorado.
The political climate in Garfield County, CO is leaning liberal.
In Garfield County, CO 49.9% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 47.6% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.5% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, Garfield county flipped narrowly Democratic, 49.9% to 47.6%.
Garfield county flipped Democratic after voting Republican in the previous five Presidential elections.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Garfield County, CO is leaning liberal.
Glenwood Springs Metro Area is somewhat liberal.
Colorado is somewhat liberal.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Garfield, Colorado: R r r r r d
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D for the Democrat and I for the Independent. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last three elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Garfield County, CO
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 7,171 contributions totaling $1,327,505 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $185 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 897 contributions totaling $450,762 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $503 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)