Politics

Jared Polis Wins Governor Of Colorado, Pushing The State Further Left

Reuters

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Tim Pearce Energy Reporter
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Democrat Jared Polis beat Republican Walker Stapleton on Tuesday night to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper as Colorado’s next chief executive.

Polis won, becoming the first openly gay governor to be elected in the U.S., according to The Hill and Yahoo News. (RELATED: Here Are The Candidates Who Received Trump’s Endorsement In The Midterms)

Polis was the frontrunner for the entire race, leading in every poll cited by Real Clear Politics by 5 to 8 points. Though Hickenlooper is a Democrat, Polis’s election is a leftward shift for Colorado on several key issues.

Hickenlooper, a former petroleum geologist, resisted increased regulation on Colorado’s $31 billion oil and gas industry. Polis campaigned on increasing regulations on the industry and supported the idea of a carbon tax to raise funds for other government expenditures, such as increased education and infrastructure funding and supporting a single-payer, government-run health care system in Colorado, the Colorado Sun reports.

Polis supports pushing back oil and gas activity 2,000 feet from homes, businesses and protected areas such as playgrounds and historic sites. Oil and gas companies say a law like that would devastate the industry.

Stapleton, a Trump-friendly conservative and two-term state treasurer, attempted to swing voters from Polis to himself by highlighting Polis’s progressive stances and the fact that self-described Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont campaigned for Polis.

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