Colorado’s Secretary of State released updated ballot return figures at noon today, with another expected at 3pm MDT:
*Party/ Ballots Returned Thus Far/ Total Active Voters/ Percent Returned
Democrats: 298,062/ 817,458/ 36%
Republicans: 340,788/ 855,667/ 40%
Voters in both parties have now easily exceeded previous record turnout this decade, with 2010 primary percentages expected to roughly double the 2008 primary results, which was around 22%.
Image courtesy of Colorado Secretary of State
For the primary, two-thirds of Colorado’s counties are conducting mail-only balloting, while the remaining third will use traditional polling places or voting centers. Weld and El Paso counties–seen above–may play a significant role in finalizing the outcome, if the races remain close once other counties begin releasing their results after polls close at 7 p.m. and candidates await final precinct voting tallies, including voters who affiliated today to vote in the primary (available in all counties).