When Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced his run for governor in January, he surely expected others to join in the fight for the 2026 Democratic nomination. He raised nearly $2 million as the only Democratic candidate for three months, but any early advantage appears to have worn thin.
Six months later, the only other high-profile candidate – U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet – leads him by 31 points, according to a June poll of likely Democratic primary voters by Global Strategy Group. A quarter of those voters are undecided. The poll shows Weiser’s favorability rating has improved 13 points since a December poll by Magellan Strategies, but it still lags nearly 30 points behind Bennet’s rating.
Still, Weiser said he’s undeterred by Bennet’s lead and that he has the fundraising and grassroots support to continue his campaign through Election Day.
In his time as attorney general, his first statewide office, he’s brought numerous high-profile cases, including cases against pharmaceuticals involved in Colorado’s opioid crisis. Those will bring back about $870 million toward opioid abatement programs over the next 18 years.
Weiser has also challenged President Donald Trump, attending numerous protests and joining 25 lawsuits against the administration with other Democratic attorneys general this year.
Of those 25, he’s led three: a case against the gutting of AmeriCorps, one against the cutting of congressionally-appropriated electric vehicle infrastructure funding and one against the termination of public health grants.
All three have yielded partial or full preliminary injunctions, meaning the funding must continue flowing to the involved states until a final ruling decides otherwise.
Weiser’s campaign slogan, “Standing up for Colorado,” is a nod to his belief that he must call out Trump anytime his administration harms the state.
“The Trump administration has a number of efforts, some around climate, some around diversity, some around people they don’t like, where they’re engaging in intimidation or pressure campaigns,” he said. “What you get with me as a governor is a proven leader committed to fighting for principle, who is not going to give in to fear or intimidation.”
Weiser has been challenging Trump since his first term, suing that administration 11 times during its final two years. This year, he’s made the rounds on national and local news networks to discuss some of his 25 cases and call out the administration.
He sued the Biden administration, albeit only once. He also supported an Eagle County case against the Biden administration that aimed to keep the Uinta Basin Rail oil train out of the state. The Supreme Court recently ruled against the county.
He said his standard – looking for instances of an administration both breaking the law and harming Colorado – hasn’t changed, but any guardrails provided by Trump’s first term staff are gone. As a result, he believes Trump is now acting in ways that are “plainly lawless.”
He disagrees with the so-called “pick and choose your battles” strategy, saying it’s better to “show strength.”
He criticized Bennet’s strategy of supporting some Cabinet nominees in hopes of building relationships with them to mitigate harm, calling it a “failed strategy.”
“I don’t think building relationships with people who are acting in ways that are lawless and harmful is serving Colorado,” he said.
Weiser added that he is willing to work with the Trump administration when it benefits Colorado, pointing to an antitrust lawsuit against Google with the Justice Department that has been proceeding since the first Trump administration. He also said he would work to keep Space Force bases in Colorado and continue the Commerce Department’s quantum initiatives in the state.
Looking back on the 2024 elections, Weiser said the Democratic Party was viewed as “out-of-touch” and ineffective. Even now, the national party has been “slow to find its footing,” he said.
“We can’t simply be just, ‘We’re not Donald Trump.’” he said. “We have to be, ‘We believe in the rule of law, we believe in our freedoms and we know how to govern in ways that make life better for people, and we’re able to show that on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis.’”
In addition to continuing to call out Trump at every corner, Weiser believes Colorado would benefit from some improved Democratic policies.
He referenced a March speech, in which he advocated for management that protects agricultural communities’ access to the water in their areas and highlighted success stories that involved collaboration between local stakeholders and companies. He floated ideas of a statewide conservation program to compensate people who don’t use their water rights or a program that would allow the state to manage slack capacity and distribute it during shortages.
On public safety, he said the state needs to “have a serious and committed effort to recruit and support law enforcement,” rely on data-driven approaches for community safety and improve reentry programs for people leaving prison.
To improve youth mental health, Weiser said he wants to launch a mentoring program for young people. He said this would build on his work as AG, which includes a lawsuit against e-cigarette company Juul for deceptive advertising that brought back nearly $32 million. That money funds youth programs across the state.
Strategies to expand affordable housing will vary by county, he said, making it necessary to collaborate with local leaders to ensure projects aren’t stalled by state-level red tape.
“I bring a real innovation mindset of how we improve government performance,” Weiser said. “I’m going to bring that mindset to bear on how we do better on affordable housing.”
A year out from the primary, Bennet’s 31-point lead is a daunting figure.
To date, Weiser has nearly 120 endorsements to Bennet’s over 130. La Plata County Commissioner Matt Salka has endorsed Weiser, while Commissioner Marsha Porter-Norton, has switched her pledge from Weiser to Bennet. Democratic congressmen Joe Neguse, CD-2, and Jason Crow, CD-6, along with governor-turned-senator John Hickenlooper have endorsed Bennet.
Weiser believes Bennet’s departure from the Senate would be a “big loss” for the state that hasn’t had a senator “this well respected, this steeped in legislative work” in many years. Colorado hasn’t had a senator with over 16 years of seniority since the early 1970s, and its other senator has only held his seat since 2021.
For his part, Bennet says he can be more effective at rebuilding Democratic platforms and fighting Trump from Denver than from the “broken” political arena in Washington.
Weiser, who is term-limited as attorney general, said he’s not interested in Bennet’s Senate seat should Bennet become governor and appoint his successor.
“My message is simple,” he said. “The best senator for Colorado is Michael Bennet. The best governor for Colorado is Phil Weiser. … That’s my core message. I believe that deeply. That’s why I’m committed to being in this race.”
