“This means that Pueblo['s] [inactive] voters responded and will have a significant impact on this year’s election,” Ortiz said. “The bottom line is that all registered voters had the opportunity to cast a vote. And the more people who participate, the stronger our community.”

Ortiz reports that the largest percentage of inactive voter ballots is coming from hard-pressed Pueblo County District Two, where roughly 700 inactive voters cast ballots, which is 23 percent of the votes cast in the district.

“That’s the way it is across the state,” Ortiz told the Independent. “That’s what they found in Denver, too. Many inactive voters reside in economically challenged areas.”

An inactive voter in Colorado is one who is legally registered but who has failed to cast a vote in the previous general election.

MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow compared a map of Denver County inactive voters with a demographic map of the county, demonstrating that Gessler’s order would have disproportionately affected minority voters.

Gessler unveiled his new interpretation of state election law in September, just weeks before Election Day, telling clerks it was illegal for them to send ballots to inactive voters. He then filed a lawsuit seeking to enjoin Denver County from sending out ballots to inactive voters. Pueblo County later joined the suit.

Gessler said he was seeking to make state election processes uniform and to guard against fraud. He never provided any evidence of fraud related to inactive voter ballots. Many believed Gessler, a longtime Republican partisan campaign finance and election law attorney, was engaging in thinly veiled vote suppression.

A Denver District Court judge ultimately ruled against Gessler and the injunction. The court is still weighing the secretary of state’s interpretation of the law. Ortiz said he expects a decision in March or April.

Pueblo County, like Denver, has routinely mailed ballots to all registered voters, active and inactive. Ortiz was pained by Gessler’s new order and pointed out that the “inactive voter” category included soldiers fighting overseas, men and women seeking to promote the democratic right to vote in places like Afghanistan.

Ortiz said Pueblo County counsel advised him that Gessler’s interpretation of election law would force Pueblo–- and all the counties of Colorado by extension–- to violate the federal Uniform Military and Overseas Voters Act, which requires clerks to mail ballots to all eligible voters in the military.

On average, roughly 3 percent of inactive voters statewide cast ballots in recent elections, according to the secretary of state’s website. Counties have previously weighed whether or not to send inactive voters ballots mainly based on cost concerns. Nine counties sent out ballots to inactive voters this year.

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Voters in Breckenridge overwhelmingly backed the decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana and paraphernalia Tuesday, while in the counties surrounding Vail and Aspen, voters approved special-improvement districts for green-energy projects on homes and businesses.

The Breck vote (71 percent favored the measure) was largely symbolic since possession of up to an ounce of pot by people 21 and older is still illegal under state law (unless they have a medical marijuana card), but Breckenridge Police Chief Rick Holman told the Summit Daily News his department doesn’t spend a lot of time busting people with small amounts of weed anyway.

In Eagle County – home to Vail and Beaver Creek ski areas — voters by a 53 to 47 percent margin approved a program that would allow homeowners to make energy-efficiency improvement by borrowing against a special assessment on their property taxes that would then stay with the home even if it’s sold.

A similar program won approval by a much wider margin in the even more liberal environs of Pitkin County, home to the Aspen ski areas. Voters there approved the measure by a 73 to 27-percent margin. Both programs will likely be modeled after a Boulder County program in place for more than a year.

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Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman at his campaign headquarters Tuesday (David Weigel)

It was a sour note in a night of mostly good news for Republicans. The party’s slate in Virginia, a state where it had lost ground for eight years, was so dominant that it pulled seven Republican candidates into the state House of Delegates. In New Jersey, where several election cycles had seen Republican leads collapse in the final days, former U.S. attorney Chris Christie handily defeated incumbent Gov. Jon Corzine. Conservatives rallied to overturn a same-sex marriage law in Maine, and Republican candidates won surprise, under-the-radar victories in local races in New York and Connecticut.

The problem for conservatives now is their definition of success, in the intoxicating run-up to the election, wasn’t based on a multi-state win. Instead, it was all about Hoffman.

“Hoffman is likely to win,” said Bill Kristol, the editor of the Weekly Standard, during a Monday appearance on Fox News. “This is a classic swing congressional district. If a conservative Republican can win in this district with all the disadvantages of the chaos on the Republican side and the official Republican candidate pulling out and endorsing the Democrat, what does that say to the moderate Democrats in the House?” As late as 10:13 on Tuesday night, the National Review writer Victor Davis Hanson referred to the Democrats’ “three candidates” who looked like they would go down to defeat in a referendum on Barack Obama. Two were defeated–one, Bill Owens, was not.

In the last, frantic 72 hours of the race, conservatives focused on NY-23 as an all-but-sure win for the unlikeliest of candidates, a conservative triumph that would put an exclamation point on a great Republican night. After a Monday night campaign appearance for Hoffman, Jeri Thompson told TWI that a victory for the Conservative “would mean the Blue Dog Democrats stiffen their spines and say ‘no way, there’s no way we’re going to vote for health care.’” In his campaign appearances on Monday and Tuesday, the preternaturally low-key Hoffman began predicting victory. Asked if Scozzafava’s endorsement of Owens would hurt him, he said he’d “win without her.” Asked about the implications of a possible win, Hoffman eschewed the typical “too soon to say” response and talked about what “this victory” would mean for conservative, low-tax and anti-spending values.

If Hoffman and staff were too optimistic, they had their reasons. In the final stretch of the campaign, they welcomed in a surge of anti-abortion and Tea Party activists who hit the streets to canvass and get out votes. On Election Day, the anti-abortion Susan B. Anthony List coordinated more than a hundred activists to hand out sample ballots at polling stations. And at polling places visited by TWI, turnout was just what Hoffman’s campaign hoped for–high in the right areas–and voters who chose either candidate picked up on aspects of his message.

Continue reading at the Washington Independent, the Colorado Independent’s sister site in D.C.

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Bob Schaffer speaks during a debate with Mark Udall in Denver. (Photo/Jason Kosena)

As Democrats counted win after win this evening, Republicans at the Colorado GOP event in Littleton appeared exhausted as the results rolled in. Thousands of people roamed slowly around the Marriott Hotel, and several lounged on chairs and couches in the hallway. A few engaged in philosophical discussion about the election results, while others asked their friends where to find more food or what they had in mind for tomorrow.

Republican Party heavyweights, on the other hand, seemed focused on a more distant future. Senate Candidate Bob Shaffer — who was pummeled by Mark Udall tonight — gave his concession speech around 9 p.m., reminding the standing crowd to work for 2010.

“For all of those who are activists in the room and who believe brighter days are ahead of us, here is a statistic to keep in mind,” he said. At this point, a young man at a table not far from the stage muttered “We suck?” under his breath. But Shaffer, who didn’t hear, continued. “We have 730 days until the next election. We have a governor’s race to win in 730 days. We have to win the majority back in the Colorado House and the Colorado Senate. We have congressional seats to win in 730 days. Let’s keep our chin up and our eyes on the horizon. We know how to win elections in Colorado.”

Shaffer congratulated Udall, conceding that Colorado “took a giant leap to the left this year and the years prior.” One person in the audience booed. He concluded by saying, “Let’s not think about the trouncing we took across the country. Let’s think about the victories that are 730 days ahead, and let’s get to work.”

But not everyone was thinking about tomorrow. Down the hall from the main ballroom, a few dozen people gathered to watch a small TV that was playing Barack Obama’s victory speech.

One woman walked quickly by and looked up at the monitor. “Ugh. Turn it off,” she said.

Marilyn Musgrave at the final debate in Windsor. (Photo/Jason Kosena)

The race was characterized by vicious attack ads, ethics complaints and an enormous fundraising haul by the candidates themselves and by special interests groups.

Jason Kosena reports from the Larimer County Democrats’ victory party:

Betsy Markey, the first Democrat elected to the 4th CD in 36 years, just finished a rousing victory speech at the Hilton in Fort Collins, her hometown. Thanking her family and staff individually, Markey said the race against Rep. Marilyn Musgrave was a tough-fought battle.

“I want to thank Marilyn Musgrave,” Markey said to cheers from 400-500 people. “I respect anyone who is willing to put their name out there and go through this process.”

Markey continued her speech to supporters, telling them this year change was not just a slogan but an anthem — an anthem she heard loud and clear.

“I promise you here tonight that I will only serve in the 4th Congressional District for as long as I hear that anthem,” Markey said as she finished her speech.

Read more of The Colorado Independent’s coverage of the CD 4 race.

Stay tuned for more insights and analysis.

Compare the state returns against this national interactive MSNBC map to track which party will control Congress.

UPDATED: On heels of Barack Obama’s national landslide, Colorado turns a deep Blue, handing wins to Obama, Udall and Markey

Barack Obama, John McCain, Joe Biden and Sarah Palin haven’t visited Colorado a record 15 times since the national conventions because of the scenery — the state’s nine electoral votes are considered crucial to winning the presidency. Colorado has only voted for a Democrat once since Lyndon Johnson’s 1964 landslide — Bill Clinton in 1992, thanks to plenty of votes that were siphoned off by Ross Perot. But this year polls show voters could continue to march the state Blue, continuing a trend begun in 2004 and 2006 when Democrats took a Senate seat, the governorship and majorities in both houses of the state Legislature.

The contest between Democrat Mark Udall and Republican Bob Schaffer to replace retiring Republican Sen. Wayne Allard has also drawn intense national attention — and tens of millions of dollars, including massive spending by outside groups, making it the most expensive race in Colorado history — because the winner will help determine whether Democrats reach a 60-vote majority in the Senate or Republicans maintain enough votes to filibuster legislation.

While Democrat Jared Polis and Republicans Doug Lamborn and Mike Coffman faced bruising primaries to win their parties’ nominations, the toughest general election battle for the state’s congressional delegation has been fought between incumbent Republican Marilyn Musgrave and her Democratic challenger Betsy Markey. One of the most expensive — and vicious — congressional contests in the country, the Musgrave-Markey match-up could go down to the wire in the state’s sprawling 4th Congressional District.

We’ll post results as they become available, including the vote for key statehouse races and downticket contests that tickle our fancy. Please use the comments section to discuss the returns as they’re tallied.

7:00 p.m. - The polls in Colorado have closed. Counties should be totaling early and absentee ballots quickly. Because more than half of registered Colorado voters cast ballots before Election Day, these results should give an indication where the night’s count is headed.

7:07 p.m. - NBC News just called Arkansas (unsurprisingly) for John McCain. The state is odd because virtually all of its statewide elective offices are held by Democrats, but it tends to vote Republican in presidential elections. Of course, former Gov. Bill Clinton carried the state, but he was the exception.

With Arkansas, McCain’s electoral vote total stands at 75 — far short of Barack Obama’s 176, as the northeast and mid Atlantic fall to the Democrat. A crucial swing state, Pennsylvania, has been projected as an Obama state — narrowing severely McCain’s path to 270 electoral votes.

7:12 p.m. - Exit poll data has just been released for Colorado. Poll watchers caution over-interpretation based on the bare data, because it must be correlated to actual turnout once votes start coming in, but it gives an idea how different groups are approaching the ballot.

In line with recent polls — in fact, every public poll since early summer — Democratic Senate candidate Mark Udall is winning a majority of both men and women in Colorado, outpacing Republican Bob Schaffer. Udall wins men 48-46 and wins women by a wider 55-42.

That’s significant because the whispered secret of Democratic electoral performance since the Reagan era has been an inability to win a plurality of male voters. Virtually every Democratic victory on a large scale, from the presidency through the Senate and, often, individual members of Congress, has been won on a disproportionate margin among women voters — that’s the gender gap. Looks like Udall is beating that decades’ long curse.

7:18 p.m. - Colorado’s Mark Udall can give his cousin, Tom Udall of New Mexico, a congratulatory call. The southernmost Udall, also a Democrat, was just declared the winner in his bid for the Senate. The two Udalls — members of the powerful western clan that included Arizona powerhouse Mo Udall (Mark’s father) and 1960s Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall (Tom’s father) — also count Republican incumbent Sen. Gordon Smith as a cousin. Smith might not be welcoming his kin to Washington, however, as he faces a tough challenge from Democrat Jeff Merkley.

7:25 p.m. - John McCain took a very early lead in Dolores County, running ahead of Barack Obama 457-201 (that’s votes, not percentage points).

In the equally consequential mountain county of Gilpin, Obama leads McCain by roughly the same margin, with 999 votes to McCain’s 580.

7:28 p.m. - Udall and Obama are leading in Jefferson County, the suburban battleground that has seen visits from Barack Obama and Sarah Palin. Politico pegs Jeffco as the 7th most important state in the country to determine tonight’s outcome. These are early returns, with less than 50 percent of the vote, but a win by the two Democrats would mark a sharp reversal from 2004, when George W. Bush carried the county at the same time voters split their ticket with the more conservative Democrat Ken Salazar, helping him win election to the Senate.

7:35 p.m. - At the same time as networks are declaring for Obama the crucial battleground state of Ohio — remember that it decided the 2004 election when it threw its votes to Bush — the Democrat appears to be leading in early Colorado returns.

With 10 percent of the vote in, here’s the Colorado tally:
Obama 183,762 55%
McCain 149,935 44%

The last Democrat to carry Colorado’s nine electoral votes was — well, no Democrat has accomplished that, because the last Democrat to win the state was Bill Clinton in 1992, when Colorado only had eight electoral votes. Prior to that election, Lyndon Johnson carried the state in his 1964 landslide, but Colorado — Spanish for “red colored” — has been colored Red every other year for 60 years.

7:42 p.m. – Secretary of State Mike Coffman has jumped out to an early lead in his bid to replace fellow Republican Tom Tancredo representing the 6th Congressional District. Political newcomer Hank Eng is trailing in his first race in Colorado (Eng was previously a member of the Appleton, Wis., city council before moving here three years ago). With partial returns from Jefferson and Elbert counties tallied, Coffman leads 40,314-30,099, or 57 percent to 43 percent.

7:47 p.m. - Boulder-based Internet entrepreneur Jared Polis, who survived a bruising three-way primary to win the Democratic nomination, appears to be cruising to election in the 2nd Congressional District. That’s the district Mark Udall has represented for a decade, before giving it up to make a run for the Senate this year — and a seat Polis has reportedly had his eye on since his teens. With 15 percent of precincts reporting, Polis easily outflanks Republican Scott Starin more than 2-to-1, running 36,554-16,117 in the liberal district.

7:56 p.m. - The Rocky Mountain News has called the election in Colorado for Barack Obama and Mark Udall.

Ever optimistic, state GOP Chairman Dick Wadhams — more than anyone, responsible for Republican performance this year, as he also helmed Schaffer’s Senate campaign — tells Denver’s KCNC-TV’s Kathy Walsh, “We’re still counting votes.”

8:01 p.m. - An hour after Colorado polls have closed, the shape of the state’s vote is taking shape.

With one third of the vote tallied in the sprawling 4th Congressional District, Democratic challenger Betsy Markey is maintaining a powerful lead over three-term incumbent Republican Marilyn Musgrave. The race has been among the toughest-fought in the state, with both candidates facing criminal complaints filed against their campaigns for advertising they believed was out of bounds. It’s also been the third-most expensive House race in the country this year and has seen millions in outside money pour onto the airwaves.

Still, observers thought before tonight the race would be close. It doesn’t appear to be so far, with 142 out of 443 precincts reporting:

Markey 93,989 61%
Musgrave 61,041 39%

8:12 p.m. - Let’s take a look at suburban Jefferson County, long a Republican stronghold but recently electing a majority of Democrats to the state legislature and seeing the GOP registration edge slim to 10,000 voters ahead of Democrats.

According to the Jeffco clerk’s election department, Barack Obama ran away with the early vote in the county, with 124,341 votes to John McCain’s 101,089 — that’s 54.01 percent to 43.91 percent, which is a tremendous lead to bank before Election Day. Those totals don’t include any votes cast on Tuesday, but very few Jeffco voters failed to take advantage of early voting. The county reports 76 percent of all active voters cast ballots either by mail or at early-voting centers, which doesn’t leave many votes still to be tallied.

8:19 p.m. – The Independent’s Wendy Norris summarizes two Hot House races in the contest for seats in Colorado’s General Assembly:

In a third match-up between John Kefalas and Bob McCluskey for the HD 52 seat it looks to be a decisive win for Democratic incumbent Kefalas, who has garnered 59% of the vote with 82% of precincts reporting. The Fort Collins seat has flipped back and forth between the two contenders since 2004.

With 72 percent of precincts reporting, incumbent Democratic Rep. Bernie Buescher is in a pitched battle with GOP challenger Laura Bradford. The razor-thin race is divided by a 10 vote margin. Buescher, who is widely considered a favorite to become speaker of the House, leads with just 50 percent of the vote against Bradford’s hair less than 50 percent of the vote.

8:24 p.m. - Back to the early vote in bellwether Jefferson County. Democrat Mark Udall racked up a similar margin to the one Barack Obama banked among the county’s absentee and early voters. Udall leads Schaffer 121,214 to 94,013 — that’s 52.10 percent to 40.41 percent. Astute readers will note that doesn’t come near approaching 100 percent — that’s because third-party candidates Bob Kinsey and Douglas “Dayhorse” Campbell each won about 2.5 percent of the vote, and roughly 2.5 percent of voters didn’t make a choice in the Senate race — the “undervote.”

By comparison, the Jefferson County undervote in the presidential race is virtually nonexistent. In other words, nearly everyone who cast a ballot made a selection for president. The third-party vote in the Jeffco early vote for president is also unusually low — Libertarian Bob Barr grabbed the most votes, but only enough to total roughly half of one percent.

8:33 p.m. - Still waiting for fresh returns in the Markey-Musgrave race, let’s take a look at the predictable results in the state’s other congressional districts. 1st District incumbent Democrat Diana DeGette appears to be sailing to re-election over Republican challenger George Lilly. In the 2nd CD, Polis leads Starin by a substantial margin and can start measuring the drapes. Incumbent 3rd District Rep. John Salazar, brother to Sen. Ken Salazar, also appears to be fending off challenger Wayne Wolf. Coffman is maintaining his lead as results trickle in from the 6th CD. First-termer Ed Perlmutter, a Democrat who won election to the swing 7th District in 2006, is also cruising to re-election past challenger John “Who?” Lerew.

The 5th District race, between first-term incumbent Doug Lamborn and Democratic challenger Hal Bidlack, shows Lamborn in the lead, but it’s early, only a few thousand votes have been counted.

8:34 p.m. - Referencing a tag line from one of his TV ads, Mark Udall has just said, “For once, I’m not kidding,” and claimed victory in the Senate election. The Denver Post, Rocky Mountain News and CNN have called the race.

8:48 p.m. – Results in the close SD 26 race between Democrat Linda Newell and Republican incumbent Laurie Clapp results may not be known tonight because Arapahoe County has said its results might be held up until morning.

8:58 p.m. - As a measure of the difficulty with the Republican brand, the lone remaining Republican congressman from the northeast — Chris Shays — has gone down to defeat.

9:00 a.m. - All the networks call the election for Barack Obama the minute the polls close on the west coast. Cheering in Chicago’s Grant Park, where Obama supporters have been gathering by the hundreds of thousands, is deafening.

9:02 p.m. - Pat Waak, Colorado Democratic Party chair, joins former Gov. Roy Romer, Gov. Bill Ritter and Sen. Ken Salazar on stage at the Sheraton downtown, where Democrats are gathering to celebrate what looks like a sweep in Colorado — and, minutes ago, the declaration that Barack Obama has won the presidency.

“We got there on a path called hope,” Romer tells the appreciative crowd. Rep. Ed Perlmutter has joined the luminaries on stage. “It’s good to win, but with winning goes an obligation,” Romer says, urging watchers to “create a new America, one that will benefit our families and all of this world.”

9:07 p.m. – Sen. Salazar revs the crowd and urges members of the Colorado Obama campaign on stage at the Sheraton.

Right now, Obama stands at 284 electoral votes, nearly twice McCain’s 147. Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Missouri and Colorado are still undecided according to KCNC’s projections, but other networks have already called Florida, Virginia and Colorado for Obama. This looks like it’s approaching an electoral vote margin unseen in a generation.

9:11 p.m. – Fox31 gets an interview with Mike Coffman at “a very somber Republican headquarters.” The secretary of state — and likely new member of Congress from the 6th District — says the vote is not a rejection of conservative Republican principals, but rather a rejection of the Bush administration. The Fox31 reporter is left momentarily speechless and throws it backk to Ron and Libby, who cut to the Democrats.

Gov. Ritter calls Barack Obama the “exclamation point on the American dream,” nearly losing his voice with boisterous shouts from the podium at the Sheraton. Ritter ticks off Obama policies, with a special mention for the “new energy economy,” a phrase Obama has said he lifted from Ritter.

9:15 p.m. - Republican Senate candidate Bob Schaffer is giving his concession speech at the Republican celebration in Greenwood Village.

Schaffer congratulates Udall for running a great campaign, says Udall will make a “great United States senator” and says “we all need to stand behind him.” A pitch for democracy — “we do it better than anyone else on the planet” — and an urge for his audience to “stand behind him.” The crowd greets Schaffer’s words with a dead silence.

Schaffer praises the party for rebuilding since 2006 — but the television stations cut away to John McCain’s concession speech in Phoenix.

“Sen. Obama has achieved a great thing for himself and for his country, and I applaud him for it,” McCain says. Then he offers his sympathy for Obama on the loss of his grandmother on Monday.

McCain pledges to do “all in my power” to help him lead the country through difficult times. McCain says he wants to heal the rifts of the campaign and “offer our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together.” The crowd cheers.

“No association has ever meant more to me than that,” McCain says — perhaps a subtle dig at his own campaign’s efforts to question Obama’s associations with Bill Ayers, etc. “Though we fell short, the failure is mine, not yours,” he says but the crowd rejects this, shouting “no!” and “John McCain! John McCain!”

McCain welcomes Sarah Palin to the stage and calls her “one of the best campaigners I’ve ever seen,” and the crowd goes wild.

“A lost election will never mean more to me than the privilege of your faith and friendship,” McCain says.

“This campaign will remain the great honor of my life.” The crowd boos and jeers when McCain congratulates Obama and “my good friend” Sen. Joe Biden. McCain moves on quickly, and wishes “godspeed to the man who was my former opponent and who will be my president.”

“We never hide from history,” McCain concludes. “We make history.”

McCain, his wife, Cindy, Palin, and her husband, Todd, wave to the crowd and leave the stage.

9:30 p.m. - The Colorado Independent’s Jason Kosena sends this dispatch from Fort Collins, where he had the chance to talk with Democrat John Kefalas, who appears to have won another term representing House District 52:

As Barack Obama was announced the winner of the presidency, the crowd of many hundred here in Fort Collins at the Democratic victory party began to cheer and clap. People were visibly moved to tears as many hugged and cried. The cheering and chants of “OBAMA! OBAMA!” have not subsided five minutes later.

“If the results hold,” Kefalas said after learning he had been projected the winner, “I think this is an affirmation of the good work that I have done at the legislature for the people of Fort Collins during the last two years. I’m very happy with the results.”

Because the race was a rematch of a close win in 2004, Kefalas said understood it could be close again. “I’m from New York and I have been taught that you never take anything for granted or assume something is true until the fat lady sings,” Kefalas told the Colorado Independent. “But, if the margin holds I think it will be a sign that everything we have been hearing from people while knocking on doors is true. People support the good work we have been doing in Denver.”

As far as his second term? “I want to work to establish the Colorado Railroad Commission that will look at how to bring a 21st century multi-modal transportation system to Colorado.” He also said that health-care reform and working to bring the EITC back to Colorado would be among his priorities.

9:43 p.m. - Democrat Betsy Markey can claim victory in her bid to unseat three-term Republican Marilyn Musgrave. With two-thirds of the vote in, Markey holds a substantial lead over the controversial Musgrave, who has drawn fire (and heavy opposition spending) for her strong opposition to gay marriage and firm stand on other socially conservative positions.

Markey 140,752 57%
Musgrave 105,480 43%

Markey, who worked for Sen. Ken Salazar running his northern Colorado office before throwing her hat in the ring, performed particularly well in Larimer County, home to Fort Collins. With 83 percent of precincts reporting:

Markey 86,575 61%
Musgrave 55,417 39%

But Markey found the winning margin — enough to offset Musgrave’s consistent lead in the district’s counties that cover Colorado’s eastern plains — in more heavily Republican Weld County, which includes Greeley. With 98 percent reporting:

Markey 43,158 53%
Musgrave 38,047 47%

Pundits had predicted Markey would need to hold Musgrave to a tie in Weld County, which is considered Musgrave’s largest base of suport, but few had ventured a prediction Markey could carry it.

9:45 p.m. – With more than 86 percent reporting in SD 26, Democrat Linda Newell is leading incumbent Republican Lauri Clapp with 51 percent of the vote

9:59 p.m. - Barack Obama has taken the stage in Grant Park in Chicago to claim victory.

“Is there anyone out there who doubts that America is a place where all things are possible?”

“Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals, a collection of red states and blue states, we are and always will be the United States of America.” it’s a reprise of the line that cemented his hold on the Democratic Party at the 2004 national convention.

Obama congratulates “this brave and self-less leader,” in a nod to his opponent, John McCain.

Introducing “the nation’s next first lady,” Obama draws cheers before telling his two daughters he loves them both “more than you can imagine,” and gets another cheer when he tells them “you have earned the new puppy that’s coming with us to the White House.” Obama enumerates family members and thanks them, then moves into campaign territory.

Obama calls campaign manager David Plouffe the “unsung hero” of the campaign, and thanks chief strategist David Axelrod. “But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you. It belongs to you,” he says as the crowd grows hushed.

“Even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime,” Obama says, listing the two wars, “a planet in peril” and the economic crisis.

“We will get there,” he tells the crowd. “We as a people will get there,” prompting a sustained chant of “Yes we can” from the crowd.

Obama promises honesty about challenges and says he will “listen to you, especially if we disagree.”

“This victory alone is not the change we seek, it is only the chance to make that change,” he says, calling for a “new spirit of sacrifice.”

Obama invokes Lincoln — “those are values we all share” — and quotes Lincoln, saying “We are not enemies, we are friends.”

“I hear your voices,” he says to those who did not vote for him. “I need your help, and I will be your president too.”

Promising a “new dawn of American leadership” to listeners around the world. “To those who would tear the world down, we will defeat you.”

Obama lists “democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope” as the “true genius of America.”

Obama talks about Ann Nixon Cooper, 106 years old, born a generation after slavery, who cast her ballot his way in Atlanta. He recounts historic moments and historic change Cooper saw, from the Great Depression through World War II, the moon landing and the fall of the Berlin Wall. “After 106 years in America, through the best times and the darkest hours, she knows how America can change,” Obama said.

Obama concludes his 15-minute speech with the refrain “yes we can” and waves to the crowd while rather cheesy music swells. Joe Biden strides out to embrace the president-elect and they wave to the crowd, Biden all smiles but Obama looking more serious.

Here’s Obama’s acceptance speech, in two parts:

10:24 p.m. - A bright star of the Democratic majority in the state House looks to be going down to defeat by a razor-thin margin, according to unofficial Mesa Conty results. State Rep. Bernie Buescher, the HD 55 incumbent, is 123 votes behind Republican challenger Laura Bradford. The result could throw House Democrats into disarray because Buescher was widely rumored to be favored as the next speaker of the House, replacing the retiring Speaker Andrew Romanoff of Denver, who is stepping down due to term limits.

Laura Bradford (R) 14,682 48.6%
Bernie Buescher (D) 14559 48.2%

Total doesn’t add up to 100% because 958 votes, or 3.2 percent, were counted as “undervotes” and included in the total.

The Colorado Independent’s David O. Williams observes:

Buescher is a moderate known for reaching across the aisle and seemed poised to ride the blue wave sweeping the rest of the state to victory and become the next speaker of the House. But Mesa County is heavily conservative and largely pro-energy, and the incumbent Buescher, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, was viewed by some as siding with the Ritter administration on tougher drilling regulations.

10:34 p.m. - Betsy Markey is ready to declare victory in the 4th District race, according to her spokesman, Ben Marter. She plans to make a speech at the Hilton in Fort Collins, where Larimer County Democrats are celebrating.

Markey, who is at the Hilton in Fort Collins, will make a victory speech, after waiting for Obama to make his in Chicago.

10:40 p.m. – Bob Schaffer sounded a note devoid of self pity in his concession speech, according to the Rocky Mountain news. “Good campaigns don’t end on election day, win or lose, if the ideas matter,” Schaffer told the gathered Republicans. “For all of us who are activists in the room, there are 730 days until the next election. Our job in the meantime is to find new leaders.”

It’s unclear whether Schaffer could be considering a run in 2010 — the subject of rampant speculation, as his Senate campaign appears to have finished the campaign with a substantial surplus — or is preparing to pass the torch to “new leaders.”

10:42 p.m. - After some trouble making it to the stage, Betsy Markey is claiming victory in Fort Collins. She starts by thanking Marilyn Musgrave and dampens down protests from the crowd, then says anyone who puts themselves out there in front of the public deserves thanks.

It takes some time to catalog her substantial family, including some who have been there “from day one” and others who flew in for the election.

Markey reserves special praise and gratitude for “my former boss,” Sen. Ken Salazar. He came to her defense when Musgrave attacks reached into her service on his staff.

Please catch up with the Markey upset in a separate story on the Colorado Independent.

10:54 p.m. - Catching up with a dispatch from Jason Kosena, on scene with the Larimer County Democrats in Fort Collins:

After Betsy Markey spoke to a room of 400-500 supporters tonight in Fort Collins, Democratic state Reps. John Kefalas and Randy Fischer planned to take the podium to make their victory speeches. Kefalas told the Colorado Independent he is wary of declaring victory over Republican Bob McCluskey without all the results posted. However, his lead is substantial enough he will make the speech, he said.

Fort Collins Democrat state Sen. Bob Bacon, who handily won his re-election bid against Republican Matt Fries, planned to speak after Kefalas and Fischer.

11:02 p.m. - Cara DeGette reports from Democratic party central at the Sheraton in downtown Denver:

You can imagine the ecstatic mood. State Senate President Peter Groff was onstage, going down the line of introductions of the lawmakers who joined him: Sen.-elect Joyce Foster, Sens. Lois Tochtrop (who did a little dance), Jennifer Veiga. Jim Isgar, Bob Hagedorn, Chris Romer and Ken Gordon.

Groff offered up his thanks to a crowd of thousands, who have taken Colorado from a “deep red to a purple, to light blue to, tonight, a deep blue…”

It was then, on the big screen, CNN announced its projected winner for President of the United States: Barack Obama. The cheering was thunderous, the music instantly recognizable: Signed, Sealed, Delivered.

Former Gov. Roy Romer took the podium. “Colorado, this is a new day,” he said. “A new day for us, for this nation, and this world.”

Sen. Ken Salazar followed, then Gov. Bill Ritter, who thanked Colorado for delivering its nine electoral votes to Obama. Ritter recalled nine months ago being asked by a reporter if Obama could really expect to win Colorado.

“In Colorado we believe in the American Dream,” Ritter said he told the reporter, “and Barack Obama is the exclamation point on the American Dream.”

Cheesy? Not to this energized crowd. Not by a mile.

11:25 p.m. - Bradford has taken a 400-vote lead over Buescher in the race for state House District 55 — an outcome that could determine who takes the job of speaker, running the House, a position Buescher was favored to win.

Laura Bradford (R) 15,988 50.64%
Bernie Buescher (D) 15,583 49.36%

11:32 p.m. – The state Senate District 26 race is down to the wire, depending on 52 polling boxes remaining to be counted, according to PolitickerCO. Democrat Linda Newell leads Republican Lauri Clapp by 139 votes. Newell predicted results within an hour but didn’t know which precincts were represented by the uncounted boxes.

11:45 p.m. – How are Colorado’s newspapers and Web sites naming the election?

The Denver Post headlines its site:
OBAMA ELECTED PRESIDENT IN HISTORIC VICTORY

with another heading over the main story about state results:
Colorado turns blue

The Rocky Mountain News headlines its site:
Obama: ‘Change has come to America’

and uses this utilitarian headline for its state story:
Democrats win across state

The Fort Collins Coloradoan headlines:
Fort Collins voters choose ‘change’

The Colorado Springs Gazette’s lead story is:
‘Yes, we can’: Obama vows to be president for all

The Aurora Sentinel goes with the no-nonsense:
Barack Obama wins

The Pueblo Chieftain seems to have given over its Web site to election returns, without a headline, and the Greeley Tribune puts an election night chat feature up top.

Want to guess how many variations on “turning blue” show up on the actual newspaper front pages Wednesday morning?

UPDATE: Eight of 10 constitutional amendments fail. See below for details.

8:48 p.m. – With less than 20 percent of the vote tallied, CNN is reporting Amendment 46, the anti-affirmative action measure, was trailing by a slim margin of 52 to 48 percent with 25 percent of the vote in, a figure that hasn’t budged much all evening.

Amendment 48, the personhood amendment that would define a fertilized egg as a human being with constitutional rights, was being rejected by voters by an overwhelming margin of 75 to 25 percent with 25 percent of the vote in.

David O. Williams

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9:00 – Amendment 50, a gaming initiative that would allow Colorado’s three gambling towns –- Cripple Creek, Blackhawk and Central City –- to up their limits from $5 a bet to $100, to expand hours and to add more games, looked poised for victory by a margin of 58 to 42 percent with 24 percent of the vote in. Some of the proceeds would benefit the state’s community college system.

David O. Williams

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9:15 p.m. – With roughly 25 percent of the vote in, several ballot measures are in tight straits and appear to be on the way to failing.

Amendments 47, 49 and 54 pitted a strange bedfellows coalition of labor and business interests against conservative, anti-tax forces led primarily by the Independence Institute.

Amendment 47 would have restricted labor organizing in Colorado by banning collective-bargaining agreements between unions and businesses that require minimal agency fees from non-member employees who receive union-negotiated benefits in the workplace. It is currently failing 55-44.

Attempting to prohibit unions from collecting member dues and agency fees through government payroll deductions, Amendment 49, and a companion measure, Amendment 54, that would prevent unions officers and government vendors from making political contributions: The former is failing by a whopping 19 points, 59-40, while the latter is reporting at a less comfortable loss margin, 52-48.

Wendy Norris

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9:23 p.m. – Coloradans must have been in a foul mood this election season. Eight of 10 ballot measures are going down in defeat. The only two passing at this point are: Amendment 50 to increase gaming limits (58-41) and the anti-labor Amendment 54 (50-49).

Wendy Norris

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9:31 p.m. – CNN is reporting fascinating exit polls on Amendment 48. Two-thirds of men opposed the measure -– a higher margin than women, who were more directly affected by the Colorado for Equal Rights’ broader aim (intended or not) to end abortion and curb contraceptive use. People over the age of 65 voted against the proposal at higher margins than young people. Stay tuned for more analysis.

Wendy Norris

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9:55 p.m. – A pair of amendments that dealt with the state’s oil-and-gas severance tax are going down in flames with just under 40 percent of the votes counted. Amendment 52, a constitutional measure that would have kept the severance tax (lowest among major energy-producing state) the same but dedicated those funds to Interstate 70 improvements is trailing by a whopping 62 to 38 percent with 37 percent of the votes in.

Amendment 58, a statutory measure that would have upped the severance tax and generated another $321 million a year in funds for higher education scholarships, wildlife protection and renewable energy projects, is trailing 43 percent to 57 percent, also with 37 percent of the vote in.

Amendment 52 was criticized as a diversionary tactic put forth by three pro-energy lawmakers to undercut 58, which was met by a wave of opposition cash (more than $11 million) put up by major oil companies. Even many Republicans opposed 52 because it would have taken funds from water projects. Some Democrats opposed 58 because they felt it didn’t give enough money back to local communities on the Western Slope hardest hit by the natural-gas boom.

David O. Williams

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10:05 p.m. – Advocates for the developmentally disabled were stunningly defeated 61-38 to add a fraction of a cent to sales and use taxes in order to eliminate years-long wait lists for supportive services via Amendment 51. Opponents claimed that with the national economy in tatters the timing was poor and the addition of a constitutional amendment was inappropriate.

Wendy Norris

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10:23 p.m. – An effort, led by California businessman Ward Connerly, to repeal statewide affirmative action programs, has clung to a tenuous margin of defeat all evening. It is currently going down 51-48 with 36 percent of precincts reporting. The controversial measure sought to end preferential treatment for women and minorities in public contracting, hiring and education to address decades of institutional discrimination. Foes complained that petition circulators misled voters into signing onto the measure to place it on the ballot.

Wendy Norris

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10:25 – Amendment 59, which was aimed at fixing a vexing school funding problem created by Amendment 23 in 2000, was shot down by a resounding 56-44 margin. Backed by outgoing Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff and state treasurer Cary Kennedy, 59 would have essentially created a savings account in good economic times to be spent during downturns. The original Amendment 23 required funding increases to keep pace with national averages on school spending but it’s caused major cuts to other state programs.

David O. Williams

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11:39 p.m. -Kelley Harp, spokesman for the Yes on Amendment 47 campaign, released the following statement:

The proponents of Amendment 47 are driven by principle and believe that this was a battle worth fighting. We all strongly feel that freedom is our greatest asset in this country, and we continue to believe that Amendment 47 was a principled measure grown from our appreciation of individual liberty. It’s always better to fight for what you think is right and not be successful, than to never fight at all. Amendment 47 would have promoted individual liberty and empowered the individual worker. Fighting for these principles is always worth it, and it is a fight that will continue.

We have great respect for the democratic process, and we respect the will of the voters.

The outcome, we feel, was unfortunate, but we are comforted in knowing that we took a principled stand and fought for it until the end.

Got an Election Day story to share? Send it to us at tips@coloradoindependent.com

5:01 p.m. – They’re already counting the votes in battleground state Indiana, one of two states with the earliest closing times for polling places (the other is Kentucky, which is expected to tilt heavily toward Republican John McCain).

With 2 percent of the precincts counted, Barack Obama holds the slimmest of leads in the Hoosier State, according to figures retrieved from CNN’s election tracker at 4:45 p.m.

Obama 31,580 50%
McCain 31,138 49%

Don’t be hasty drawing conclusions from such a small sliver of the returns, but pay close attention to Indiana. The state hasn’t voted for a Democrat since 1964, and Obama has been contesting its 11 electoral votes ferociously.

Pollster.com’s Brian Schaffner pegs the usually Red state as one of the keys to understanding how the night’s election returns will play out:

Indiana is a state where Obama should presumably have benefited from the protracted nomination campaign and the massive organization he has build in that state. Thus, if turnout among young adults is going to increase markedly, it should be obvious here first. According to exit polls, in 2004, 14% of the Indiana electorate was between the ages of 18-29. We have to be careful with early exit poll figures since young voters may be more enthusiastic (and, thus, more likely to show up in early exit poll results), but if that figure goes up significantly in this election, then that is probably the first evidence we will have that young voters are turning out at higher rates in this election.

Another state to watch is Virginia. The commonwealth’s polls close at 5 p.m. Mountain Standard Time, and could provide a clue to how other swing states might fall:

Virginia may tell us more about this election than any other state. Not only does the map look very difficult for McCain if he loses Virginia (particularly if the networks can call it relatively quickly), but the demographics in Virginia can provide us with some useful insight into what may happen in other states. In 2004, exit polls indicated that African Americans made up 21% of the Virginia electorate. Will that figure improve in 2008 and, if so, by how much? What will the party id figures look like? In 2004, 39% of voters said they were Republicans compared to 35% who were Democrats. Democrats would like (and probably expect) to see those numbers flip in Virginia just as they are looking for party id gains in other high growth states like North Carolina, Colorado, and Nevada.

Ernest Luning

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5:26 p.m. – With polls predicting an Obama victory, House Democrats have become increasingly convinced that the man who helmed their 2006 takeover, former top Clinton advisor Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill), will leave Congress to serve as Chief of Staff to a President Obama.

From Roll Call:

The move would mean House Democrats are losing one of their pre-eminent political strategists — and a figure many regarded as the Speaker-in-waiting — just as they gear up to unleash an ambitious agenda with what they expect will be expanded majorities in both chambers and one of their own in the White House.

“I think it’s a big loss for the House, and it would better if he stayed,” said Steve Elmendorf, a top Democratic lobbyist. “But being Speaker is theoretical, and this is something that’s right in front of him that he can have right now.”

…

Should the rumor prove true, Democratic sources said Obama would do well to have a hard-nosed politician with an insider’s grasp of Washington power like Emanuel at his side as he takes the reins at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

“If it’s true, it makes sense,” one said. “Rahm is very smart, knows how the White House and Congress work and would be a good link between the two.

Emanuel’s still a relatively young guy, so I wouldn’t rule out a return to Congress should he get a gig in an Obama White House.

Jeff Bridges

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5:42 p.m. - Voting in the predominantly Latino neighborhood of Lincoln Park in Denver appears to be going smoothly, with a steady stream of more than two dozen voters trickling in the polling place at La Alama recreational center at 5 p.m.

The biggest rush was in the morning, according to Abbey J, a poll worker at the center who said that there had been no major problems reported. The Colorado Independent was able to confirm that there was in fact a bilingual poll worker there and that the ballots were available in Spanish, unlike problems that were alleged in Weld County earlier in the day.

Two poll watchers outside the polling place — one with the AFL-CIO and another with Just Vote Colorado— also said the day had passed by without major incident.

Erin Rosa

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6:01 p.m. - MSNBC projects Obama has won Pennsylvania as are many of the mid-Atlantic and New England states.

Projected electoral vote tally: Obama = 103 McCain= 34.

Chris Matthews says the McCain victory strategy has “crashed.” Well, I guess that’s that. Everybody in line to vote should go home since the Eastern Time Zone evidentially only matters. Dumbbell.

Wendy Norris

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6:42 p.m. – National Review Online is all atwitter about Amendment 59:

Colorado’s Amendment 59 is the latest in a long series of efforts by the Left to undermine TABOR — and it represents the most serious threat that TABOR has ever faced.

I think the most serious threat is having Douglas Bruce publicly advocating for it. How many cities have de-Bruced?

Wendy Norris

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6:48 p.m. - Two Colorado counties make Politico’s top 10 among key counties that “could help determine the winner of this year’s race” for president. Solidly Republican El Paso County and suburban Jefferson County, turning a bluer shade of purple, vault ahead of more than 3,000 counties nationwide onto the political news site’s ranking — one because it’s a bellwether for shifting winds and the the other because it’s a must-win that might not deliver.

Here’s how Politico’s Charles Mahtesian described the pair, which fell just below a couple Missouri counties and edged out a handful of Ohio counties:

7) Jefferson County, Colo.: There are still more registered Republicans than Democrats in this Denver suburb, but it may not be that way for long. Once a GOP bastion, Jeffco has moved to the center in recent years; Bush carried it in 2004 but so did Democrat Ken Salazar in his Senate race. One measure of the county’s importance — GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin was dispatched here to hold one of her first solo events after the Republican National Convention.

8) El Paso County, Colo.: This conservative stronghold, home to Colorado Springs, produces GOP margins that are almost enough to offset the Democratic vote advantage in Denver. McCain will need to take at least two-thirds of the vote here in Colorado’s second-most populous county to have any shot at winning the state.

Both counties have seen numerous visits from presidential candidates this season — most recently an election-eve rally with Sarah Palin in Colorado Springs — and will bear watching all night as returns trickle in.

h/t PolitickerCO’s Jeremy Pelzer.

Ernest Luning

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6:42 p.m. - Just heard Gov. Bill Ritter riffing on Obama and Colorado in a Washington Post/Newsweek live video feed.

Ritter spent a chunk of time talking up the work that Barack Obama’s campaign has done in Colorado — including in the conservative counties of El Paso and Douglas. In Douglas County south of Denver, Obama had three campaign offices. “That’s unheard of,” Ritter said. “I’ve never seen a presidential campaign this well organized on the ground in Colorado. We had 40 [offices] to McCain’s 12 or 13.”

In addition, Ritter pumped up the “great job” that Obama did talking to Coloradans about the issues foremost on their minds — education, health care, the economy, jobs. And he had great surrogates in Colorado, Ritter said, specifically Sen. Ken Salazar and Rep. Mark Udall.

As one pundit pointed out, a Democrat hasn’t won Colorado’s race to the White House since 1992, when Ross Perot chipped in to give Bill Clinton a victory in the Centennial State.

Cara DeGette

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