Democrat Phil Weiser, Republican Victor Marx and unaffiliated candidate Greg Lopez have all identified affordability and the shortage of available housing as major concerns. They have also cited public safety and the effects of regulation on businesses. The candidates’ backgrounds and approaches, however, differ sharply.

Weiser, the state’s term-limited attorney general, has framed his campaign around public service, inclusion and the rule of law. He has also criticized what he calls rising hateful rhetoric and argued that Colorado should be more affordable and a place where young people and businesses can thrive.

“I want to serve all of Colorado,” Weiser said at a recent candidate forum.

Marx, a first-time candidate who leads a Christian ministry in Colorado Springs, has promised to “consecrate the state back to God” and says Colorado needs to be made safe and affordable. At a rally near Golden, he urged supporters to take the state back from politicians and described the election as a fight to protect children and change the state.

Lopez, a former Republican congressman and Parker mayor, says leaving the Republican Party to run unaffiliated offers voters an alternative to partisan politics. He has argued that both major parties focus too much on political advantage and too little on solving problems.

At a forum, Lopez described meeting a young Pueblo couple with good jobs who were unsure they could afford to build a life in the community where they grew up. He said their experience reflected a broader affordability problem across Colorado.

The candidates enter the final stretch with different levels of party support. Weiser won the Democratic primary over U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, 57% to 43%. Marx narrowly won the Republican nomination with just under 40%, defeating state Sen. Barb Kirkmeyer by about 2,500 votes in a field of roughly two dozen candidates. Lopez, making his third run for governor, began his campaign as a Republican and later qualified for the ballot as an unaffiliated candidate.

Colorado’s recent electoral history favors Weiser. Democrats have won every statewide executive-office race since 2018, and national election forecasters have rated the 2026 governor’s race safely Democratic. The state has not elected a Republican governor since Bill Owens won a second term in 2002. It has never elected an unaffiliated or third-party candidate to the office.

Still, unaffiliated voters now make up just over half of Colorado’s active registered electorate. Lopez’s candidacy has drawn support from some Republicans, including former U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, who endorsed Weiser instead. Buck said he was backing Weiser because he viewed him as honest, hardworking and committed to representing people with different views.

Marx has not joined Weiser in traditional moderated general-election debates, though the two appeared together at a Colorado Chamber of Commerce forum focused largely on business. Weiser and Lopez have debated twice. Marx has called the election an outsider challenge to the establishment; some Republicans who opposed him in the primary have declined to endorse him, while U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert has backed his campaign.

Marx is also appealing a proposed $57,000 campaign-finance fine. State officials allege his campaign accepted more than $82,000 in contributions above legal limits and failed to return them promptly, along with other alleged violations. A separate complaint alleges that money was routed through a campaign-merchandise company to evade contribution limits. Marx denies skirting the law and has called the proposed fine political.

Complaints involving the Weiser and Lopez campaigns were dismissed, according to the account of the cases: Weiser’s campaign corrected errors within the time allowed by state law, while the election division found insufficient facts to support the allegation against Lopez.

The candidates’ closing messages reflect their competing explanations for what is wrong with Colorado: Weiser emphasizes service and the rule of law, Marx calls for a faith-centered restoration, and Lopez argues that voters need a break from the two-party system. County clerks must receive ballots by 7 p.m. Nov. 3.