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Incumbent Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Boulder) easily won reelection against challenger Marshall Dawson (R-Boulder) in the race to represent Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District, according to a projection from the Associated Press. 

In preliminary election results as of 8 p.m. Tuesday, Neguse led with 69% of the vote compared to Dawson’s 28%. The deep blue district — which spans Boulder, Larimer, Jackson, Jefferson, Clear Creek, Gilpin, Eagle, Grand, Summit, Routt and Weld counties — heavily favors Democrats, having not voted for a Republican in more than 50 years.

First elected to the House of Representatives in 2018, Neguse has risen through the ranks of House Democratic leadership, serving as an impeachment manager during former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment in 2021 before being  earlier this year. 

Neguse has championed outdoor conservation and environmental policy during his time in the House, including sponsoring several pieces of legislation to bolster public land protection and the recreation economy. He also supported and voted for the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act in 2023 — which amounted to the largest federal spending on clean energy in U.S. history.

In a district that is home to some of the state’s highest cost-of-living areas, Neguse is supportive of efforts to allow the U.S. Forest Service  development. 

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Neguse is also a strong advocate for abortion rights, having voted multiple times in the House in favor of legislation to codify the protections in Roe v. Wade that were overturned by the Supreme Court in 2022.

His Republican opponent, Dawson, is an electrical engineer based in Longmont who serves as a senior manager for an international semiconductor company. Before that, he owned his own business. 

On many of the district’s most pressing issues, Dawson said the federal government should play little to no role. He blamed government regulations for driving up the market rate costs of housing and criticized Neguse’s support for public lands protections, which he claimed prevent recreational opportunities. 

Along with shrinking government spending and programs, Dawson  more investments in school security measures, passing a law that would require Congressional approval on all federal regulations that have economic impacts of $100 million or more and reducing the self-employment tax. 

Dawson also supported the Supreme Court’s decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that ended a 50-year constitutional right to abortion.