The Democrats lost their vast majority in the elections Colorado House After a prolonged vote count, the party lost key seats needed to maintain its two-thirds majority.

While two races will be subject to mandatory recounts due to their close margins, if the current results hold, Democrats will have only a simple majority in the House for the next two years. In 2022, the party enjoyed success in several unexpected constituencies, giving them a qualified majority.

The Democrats’ goal in this year’s elections was to maintain that supermajority and secure another one in the Senate. With the two supermajorities, they could have overridden the governor’s vetoes and could have made great strides in changing the state’s tax system.

The Democrats also failed to obtain a supermajority in the Senate.

Senatorial District 5, located on the Western Slope, was one of the most closely monitored and highly financed elections in the state, as Democrats saw it as their most critical race to secure a supermajority in the House.

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Republican Marc Catlin of Montrose defeated Democrat Cole Buerger of Glenwood Springs in the election with 52 percent of the vote, leaving Democrats one seat short of the two-thirds margin in the Senate. Like the last two years, they will have a majority of 23 votes to 12 in the House.

Vote counting was completed Thursday in two final House districts.

Republican Rebecca Keltie defeated Democratic Rep. Stephanie Vigil by just seven votes in Colorado Springs-based House District 16.

In Front Range-based House District 19, Republican Dan Woog of Frederick defeated Democrat Jillaire McMillan of Longmont by 123 votes.

There will be mandatory recounts in both races, which must be completed by December 6.

If these results are finalized, Democrats will have a 43-22 majority in the House. Over the past two years, the party split has been 46-19.