As of 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, early results showed Democrat incumbent Meghan Lukens holding a significant lead over Republican Nathan Butler in the race to represent Colorado House District 26. 

Lukens was leading by a significant margin with 34,863 of the votes counted so far in House District 26., with the incumbent garnering 22,424 votes to Butler’s 14,401.

The race was projected to be one of the most competitive in the state, giving only a 2.7% advantage to the Democratic candidate. 

Lukens, a Steamboat Springs social studies teacher, was first elected to the seat in 2022, winning by 7 percentage points over Republican candidate Savannah Wolfson. She was the first representative elected to House District 26 after 2021 redistricting brought the historically red-swinging Rio Blanco and Moffat counties into the district with the predominantly blue Routt and Eagle counties. Rio Blanco and Moffat counties were previously represented in House District 57. 

Contacted Tuesday evening at a Democratic Party gathering in Steamboat Springs, Lukens said, “I am honored to win reelection to House District 26. I am thrilled that the people of Northwest Colorado have placed their trust in me. I would also like to extend my sincere appreciation to my opponent Nathan Butler for his willingness to run for office. Also, thanks to my supporters who believed in the vision that we set forth together.”

Issues such as clean energy transition, abortion access, economic development and gun regulations dominated the campaign to represent Colorado’s House District 26. 

Butler ran a leaner campaign than the Democratic incumbent, bringing in just over $18,000 in donations and spending around $12,600 as of the final filing deadline before Election Day. Lukens brought in around $183,000 and spent $176,000. 

Lukens also received support from several independent expenditure committees including Colorado Way Forward, Coloradans for Housing Affordability and Voces Unidas. Mailers from Colorado Way Forward, the biggest spender, became a point of contention late in the campaign with Butler and Lukens disagreeing over their messages. 

Similar to her first campaign, Lukens sought reelection on a platform centered on “the three E’s”: economy, education and the environment. 

If elected to a second term, Lukens said she will work to address affordability concerns and workforce shortages, increase affordable housing and access to child care, protect the environment and support public education. 

Butler, who considers himself a Constitutional Libertarian, was encouraged to run for the House seat over the expedited closure of the Craig power plant. On the campaign trail, Butler expressed concerns that the community was provided with inadequate resources and support to transition away from coal within the given timeframe. 

Economic development, “tackling illegal and unvetted immigration,” health care, altering abortion access laws, gun rights and safety, redefining bipartisanship and election integrity were among the issues topping Butler’s campaign platform.