Colorado will send John Hickenlooper to the Senate

Colorado voters have elected two-term Democratic Governor John Hickenlooper to the U.S. Senate, showing incumbent Republican Cory Gardner the door. Gardner was arguably the GOP’s weakest Senator. Colorado is becoming less and less purple by the year, a process which has been dramatically accelerated by Donald Trump’s unpopularity in the state.

Hickenlooper’s win is the first of the night for Senate Democrats, who need a net win of four seat (or three plus the Vice President) to regain control of the Senate.

While a win for Democrats is encouraging, Hickenlooper is a neoliberal to his core (during his failed presidential bid, he compared progressive policies to Stalinism), and progressives need to hold his feet to the fire once he reaches Capitol Hill.