colorado politics

Colorado’s 1st Congressional District: Fact Sheet

Brad Jones

Brad Jones

— 5 min read
Notes: This map shows Colorado's first district. The inlaid map in the lower righthand corner shows the position of the district within the state. Sources: US Census Tiger/Line shapefiles.

Colorado’s first district includes much of the Denver metro area. It is more diverse than the rest of the state, and substantially more Democratic in its voting behavior. The district is currently represented by Dianna DeGette who has served since 1997.

Demographics

Population growth, 1990-2022

Notes: Population growth in the first district (solid line) compared to statewide trends (dotted line). The graphic shows percentage growth in the area and the data labels show the population in the area in 10,000s. Source: U.S. Census data compiled by the National Neighborhood Data Archive.

Since 1990, Colorado's population has grown by over 75%. Population growth in the area covered by the first district has been somewhat slower than the rest of the state (it has grown by just over 50% during this period).

Share of the population that is White (non-Hispanic), 1990-2022

Notes: Share of the population that is non-Hispanic White. The solid line shows the trend in the district, the dotted line shows the statewide trend. Source: U.S. Census data compiled by the National Neighborhood Data Archive.

The population in the first district is substantially more diverse compared to the rest of the state's population. In 1990, the first district's population was about 20 percent less White than the state's population. The district is still more diverse than the rest of the state, but the gap has shrunk somewhat to about 10 percentage points.

Share of the adult population that is under 40, 1990-2022

Notes: Share of the adult population that is under 40. The solid line shows the trend in the district, the dotted line shows the statewide trend. Source: U.S. Census data compiled by the National Neighborhood Data Archive.

In 1990, about half of Colorado's adult population was under 40 years old which was about equal to the share of those were under 40 in the first district. The overall state's population has aged somewhat over the past 35 years and the share of adults under 40 has decreased in the state overall, but the age distribution within the first district has remained relatively constant over this period.

Development

Land cover, 1985-2024

Notes: This animation shows the change in land cover from 1985-2024. Development is shown in grey, farmland is shown in yellow, water is shown in blue, grass/scrubland is shown in brown. Source: National Land Cover Database derived from satellite imagery.

In 1985, most of the area that is now covered by the first district was already developed. The major change to the district has occurred in the area where Denver International Airport now stands (the northeastern portion of the district). This area was completely undeveloped in 1985 and is now home to the largest airport (by land area) in the United States.

Politics

Notes: This plot shows the two-party vote in each precinct. Each point is drawn proportional to the number of votes cast in that precinct in 2024 and colored according to the margin. Sources: Precinct voting data compiled by the New York Times Upshot.

The first district is much more Democratic in its voting patterns than the rest of the state. In the 2024 election, nearly 80% of the first District supported Harris compared to 54% support statewide. To the extent that there is a Republican part of this district, it is in the southwest portion.

The relationship between racial composition and 2024 Democratic vote

Notes: This graphic shows the relationship between the share of a Census tract that is White (non-Hispanic) and two-party Democratic vote in 2024. The Pearson's correlation coefficient is shown in the bottom left-hand corner, and the line-of-best-fit is drawn through the data. Sources: Tract-level racial and ethnic composition, US Census compiled by NaNDA. Presidential vote share from the NYT Upshot projected to the tract level by the author.

Within the first district – at least in 2024 – the relationship between the racial and ethnic composition of neighborhoods in the first district is only modestly related to the vote outcomes in that neighborhood.

There is a somewhat stronger relationship between educational attainment and Democratic vote share in 2024, but even the portions of the district that have the lowest levels of educational attainment supported Harris over Trump by an average margin of over 20 points.

Click here for a listing of fact sheets for the other districts in the state.

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