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Colorado's Jared Polis Is First Out Gay Man Reelected Governor

Jared Polis
Courtesy Colorado Governor's Office

Polis made history with his election in 2018 and made more history Tuesday.

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Democrat Jared Polis, the first out gay man elected governor of any U.S. state, is now the first one reelected.

NBC News and ABC News both called the Colorado governor's race for Polis about 7:30 p.m. Mountain time. At that point he had slightly more than 61 percent of the vote, Republican Heidi Ganahl about 37 percent, and three minor-party candidates less than 1 percent each. His win was largely expected -- polls had shown him with a 20-point lead over Ganahl.

Polis, first elected governor in 2018, is a former congressman and entrepreneur. He is married to Marlon Reis; their wedding in 2021 was the first same-sex wedding of a sitting U.S. governor. They had already been together for several years and are parents of two children. Polis was the first gay father in Congress.

On the campaign trail, Polis emphasized his achievements in his first term, such as implementing universal free kindergarten and signing a bill guaranteeing abortion rights.

When governors are sworn in, the U.S. will also have its first out lesbian governor, Democrat Maura Healey, who easily won her race in Massachusetts. Tina Kotek of Oregon could share that distinction with her, but that race won't be called for hours. Kotek, a Democrat, would succeed the nation's first out bisexual governor, fellow Dem Kate Brown, who could not run again due to term limits.

Colorado has reelected U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet as well. Bennet is a pro-LGBTQ+ Democrat who was challenged by moderate Republican Joe O'Dea.

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Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.
Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.