CANDIDATE RESEARCH BRIEF

2026 Colorado Governor’s Race

Victor Marx (Republican) vs. Phil Weiser (Democrat)

Based on public reporting and campaign materials

RACE OVERVIEW

Colorado will elect a new governor on November 3, 2026, to succeed term-limited Democratic Governor Jared Polis. The June 30, 2026 primaries produced the general-election matchup between Republican Victor Marx and Democrat Phil Weiser.

Weiser won the Democratic primary decisively, defeating U.S. Senator Michael Bennet by roughly 14 points (about 56.9% to 43.1%). Marx won a razor-thin, drawn-out Republican primary, defeating state Sen. Barb Kirkmeyer by just over 2,500 votes (39.9% to 39.4%); state Rep. Scott Bottoms finished third at about 20.7%. The Associated Press did not call the GOP race until July 9, roughly nine days after election day.

Context that matters: Colorado has not elected a Republican governor since Bill Owens in 2002, and Republicans have not won any statewide office in about a decade. Kamala Harris carried the state by roughly 11 points in 2024. Forecasters and both parties widely regard Weiser as the clear favorite.

VICTOR MARX (REPUBLICAN NOMINEE)

Snapshot

Party: Republican

Born: July 5, 1965, in Lafayette, Louisiana (age 61)

Home: Colorado Springs area, Colorado

Occupation: Minister, author, martial-arts instructor, founder of All Things Possible Ministries

Prior office: None — this is his first run for public office

Family: Married to Eileen Marx for ~37 years; five children and five grandchildren

Background and career

Marx describes himself as a "high-risk humanitarian" and evangelical missionary. He served three years in the U.S. Marine Corps after the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing. He has said he joined in part to avoid legal trouble stemming from fighting, stealing, and drug use as a young man.

He is the founder of All Things Possible Ministries, based in Colorado Springs, which focuses on anti-trafficking work and trauma recovery for children and veterans. He spent years in Hawaii (roughly 1995–2001) running a Christian karate school, and was for three years an assistant at James Dobson’s Focus on the Family. He is associated with the martial-arts system Keichu-Do ("Cajun Karate") connected to his biological father, and claims high-degree black-belt rankings. He built a very large social-media following (millions of followers across platforms) and has spoken at Turning Point USA events; he was reported to be friendly with the late Charlie Kirk.

Campaign and primary

Marx announced his campaign on October 1, 2025, saying his wife encouraged him to run. He won about 39.5% at the April 2026 Republican state assembly, securing a spot on the primary ballot. He out-raised his primary rivals, reporting roughly $2.5 million in donations — more than Kirkmeyer and Bottoms combined — and was backed by the Freedom IEC political action committee. He was endorsed in the primary by U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert.

He notably skipped most Republican primary debates, which a University of Colorado Denver public-affairs professor called "unusual." He pulled out of a May 26 debate after a moderator asked him to substantiate a list of biographical claims, calling it a potential "staged ambush," and held a counter-rally instead.

Where he stands (stated positions)

• Public safety: central theme; opposes "soft on crime" laws, wants a "Border-Related Crime Strike Force," and task forces on fentanyl and trafficking.

• Immigration: wants to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement (including ICE) and oppose sanctuary-city policies, despite state laws limiting such cooperation.

• Second Amendment: strong gun-rights advocate; wants to codify gun rights into the Colorado constitution and roll back recent gun-control laws; opposes Flock Safety cameras.

• Taxes and spending: calls for an in-depth audit of state spending, cutting regulations, and committing to protect TABOR (the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights).

• Affordability/housing: wants to cut regulations to expand housing and childcare and increase energy production to lower gas and utility costs.

• Governing themes: law and order, affordability, and accountability; frames himself as an outsider "not beholden to anyone."

• Tina Peters: has said he would pardon the former Mesa County clerk convicted in a 2021 election-security breach (was less clear on a "full" pardon at one debate).

Controversies and scrutiny

Marx’s biography has drawn significant media scrutiny. Key flashpoints reported in coverage:

• He has claimed that at age seven his abusive stepfather forced him to shoot and kill a man in Mississippi. Local sheriffs and police say there is no record of an unsolved homicide matching the account.

• His campaign website claimed his teams "served over 45,000 women and children," many "rescued from captivity." The claim was challenged and removed; Marx has since declined to give a number, citing "security reasons."

• Journalists and talk-radio hosts have questioned his martial-arts rankings and accounts of overseas rescue missions and a claimed gun battle with ISIS; independent verification is limited or absent in available reporting.

• His primary opponents publicly called him a "liar," "con man," "fraud," and "unfit," and both declined to endorse him. Kirkmeyer signed off her concession with a pointed dig: "for the record, I still haven’t killed anyone."

• Some establishment Republicans (e.g., former state GOP chair Dick Wadhams) warn he could damage down-ballot Republicans in competitive races.

Note: Several of the most extreme claims circulating about Marx (e.g., alleged "mind-control experiments") appear mainly in opposition/advocacy content rather than neutral reporting, and remain unverified. This brief flags them as disputed rather than established.

PHIL WEISER (DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE)

Snapshot

Party: Democratic

Born: May 10, 1968 (age 58)

Home: Denver, Colorado

Current office: Attorney General of Colorado (39th AG), since January 2019 — second term

Occupation: Lawyer; former law professor and dean, University of Colorado Law School

Education: B.A., Swarthmore College; J.D. (high honors), New York University School of Law

Family: Lives in Denver with his wife, Dr. Heidi Wald; two children; son and grandson of Holocaust survivors

Background and career

Weiser is one of the more academically credentialed state attorneys general in the country. After law school he clerked for Judge David Ebel on the Tenth Circuit, then clerked simultaneously for U.S. Supreme Court Justices Byron White and Ruth Bader Ginsburg during the 1995 term. He often cites Justice Ginsburg as a formative influence.

He worked in the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division under President Clinton (senior counsel, 1996–1998), then joined the University of Colorado Law School in 1999, where he founded the Silicon Flatirons Center for Law, Technology, and Entrepreneurship and the Journal on Telecommunications & High Technology Law. Under President Obama he served as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Antitrust Division (2009–2010) and Senior Advisor for Technology and Innovation at the White House National Economic Council (2010–2011). He was dean of CU Law School from 2011 to 2016. He co-authored the book "Digital Crossroads: American Telecommunications Policy in the Internet Age."

Record as Attorney General

• Secured over $900 million in opioid settlement funds for treatment, recovery, and prevention; Colorado was recognized nationally for its opioid-settlement planning framework.

• Returned over $550 million to Colorado consumers through fraud and consumer-protection enforcement; strengthened the Colorado Consumer Protection Act.

• Led/joined antitrust actions against major companies (e.g., Google and Live Nation/Ticketmaster) and challenged the Kroger/Albertsons merger (held 19 town halls on it).

• Championed youth online-safety efforts, including multistate action involving Meta and TikTok, and a Juul Labs settlement funding vaping cessation and youth mental health.

• Spearheaded and implemented the Colorado Privacy Act; chairs the Colorado POST Board and directed the first update to peace-officer training curriculum in 30 years.

• Argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, including Colorado Department of State v. Baca (the "faithless electors" case).

• Has filed a high volume of multistate litigation against the Trump administration — by mid-2026 reporting, he had sued the administration dozens of times (cited as 66 times), prevailing in most so far.

Campaign for governor

Weiser announced his gubernatorial campaign on January 2, 2025, and took the top ballot spot with about 90% of delegates at the March 2026 Democratic assembly. His primary against U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet featured relatively few sharp policy disagreements; the contrast was largely one of style. Weiser cast himself as a "fighter" who understands the inner workings of state government and gets things done through collaboration, while Bennet pitched bigger, more ambitious plans. Weiser ultimately won by roughly 14 points.

Where he stands (“The Colorado Blueprint” and stated positions)

• Housing/affordability: top priority; pledges to add 40,000 attainable owner-occupied homes (closing ~50% of the shortfall), speed permitting, lower fees on homes under $600,000, protect renters from junk fees and algorithmic rent collusion. Skeptical of statewide one-size-fits-all mandates and of rent control; favors local partnership and incentives.

• Jobs/economy: wants to keep and attract businesses, expand access to capital (grants, microloans), and reduce red tape; concerned about slow population growth and businesses leaving.

• Education/kids: livable wages for teachers, lower college costs, expand universal preschool, invest in youth mental health, and a proposed "Colorado Corps" service program.

• Health care: a scaled-back plan focused on expanding primary-care access (rather than a full public option) and childcare capacity.

• TABOR/taxes: wants to reform how TABOR operates via "civic assemblies" statewide rather than a top-down approach.

• Federal pushback: central campaign theme — continue fighting Trump administration actions in court as governor; protect voting, reproductive, and LGBTQ rights, and Colorado water rights.

THE GENERAL-ELECTION MATCHUP

The November race pits a first-time candidate and outsider minister (Marx) against a two-term statewide officeholder and career lawyer (Weiser) in a state that has trended reliably Democratic in statewide contests.

• Landscape: No Republican has won the governorship since 2002 or any statewide office in ~10 years; Harris won Colorado by ~11 points in 2024. Forecasters rate Weiser the strong favorite.

• Marx’s pitch: outsider change agent on crime, cost of living, and government accountability, with a large grassroots/social-media base and MAGA-aligned enthusiasm.

• Marx’s challenges: unverified biographical claims, skipped debates, and a lack of endorsement from his own primary rivals; some GOP figures fear he drags down the ticket.

• Weiser’s pitch: experienced, credentialed "People’s Lawyer" running on affordability plus a record of legal wins; frames the choice as steady governance vs. "deception, demonization, and distraction."

• Opening tone: Weiser called Marx "a threat to our state’s values"; Marx called for unity, saying "the general election starts now."

Sourcing note: Compiled from public reporting (Colorado Public Radio, Colorado Politics, The Colorado Sun, Colorado Newsline, CNN, NBC News, KUNC), Wikipedia, Ballotpedia, and the candidates’ official campaign and government sites. Vote totals from the June 30 primary are final/unofficial as reported in early-to-mid July 2026. Disputed personal claims are labeled as such.