Colorado U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse is leading in an early poll for the Democratic party’s 2026 gubernatorial primary, according to a survey of 630 registered voters released by Magellan Strategies. Neguse, along with Secretary of State Jena Griswold, former U.S. ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar, and Attorney General Phil Weiser, are all potential candidates for the race to succeed Gov. Jared Polis. Neguse had the highest level of support at 20%, followed by Griswold at 16%, Salazar at 11%, and Weiser at 8%. However, 37% of respondents were undecided, and 8% planned to support a candidate not listed.
The survey was conducted by Magellan from Dec. 4-9 and released by Healthier Colorado. Results showed that all four potential candidates have favorable views among voters, with Griswold having the highest shares of both favorable and unfavorable ratings. Neguse, representing the 2nd Congressional District, had the largest share of respondents who viewed him very favorably, despite 37% of respondents saying they had never heard of him or Weiser.
Griswold and Weiser were both elected in 2018 and 2022 along with Polis. Salazar, who served in the Obama administration, was nominated as ambassador to Mexico in 2021. None of the potential candidates have formally entered the race, with Griswold and Weiser term-limited in their current offices. The poll had a margin of error of 3.9 percentage points and included a weighted sample to reflect typical turnout in a midterm Democratic primary in Colorado.
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