A three-vote margin flipped a Colorado Springs state House seat from Democrat to Republican, according to a mandatory recount result announced Thursday evening, officially cracking the Democratic supermajority in the chamber.
Republican Rebecca Keltie won 20,641 votes to Democratic incumbent Rep. Steph Vigil’s 20,638 in House District 16 — and with it, secured 22 GOP seats in the 65-member chamber. Democrats still hold a commanding majority with 43 seats, one shy of the 2-to-1 ratio required for a supermajority.
Another mandatory recount showed Republican Dan Woog holding onto his lead in House District 19, which straddles Boulder and Weld counties. Woog, a former state representative, won 28,420 votes to Democrat Jillaire McMillan’s 28,310. McMillan conceded the race Nov. 15, but the margins were still close enough to fall into a mandatory recount.
Vigil has promised to honor the results of the recount.
A two-thirds supermajority means legislators could override a veto by the governor or refer amendments to the state constitution to voters on a party-line vote. Given the political realities of the Capitol, the lost supermajority will likely mean very little practical change in how the building works.
Democrats were already one seat shy of a supermajority in the Senate, a margin unchanged by November’s election. The party still holds solid control of both chambers, and Gov. Jared Polis is also a Democrat.
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