on the November ballot seeks to address something the Colorado Constitution currently prohibits — the redrawing of congressional district boundaries outside the once-a-decade recalibration tied to updated census counts.
The conservative-backed effort would require the state’s independent redistricting commission and the Colorado Supreme Court to sign off on any district maps drawn outside the normal cycle. It would also prohibit explicit gerrymandering.
Because it would add to the state constitution, Amendment 86 needs at least 55% approval from voters to pass.
How did Amendment 86 come about?
Congressional districts are rarely redrawn mid-decade. But when Republicans in Texas took on redistricting in 2025, it set off a surge of similar attempts in California, Florida, North Carolina, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, Utah, Alabama and Louisiana as the major parties jockeyed to redraw states’ districts for maximum partisan advantage, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
A federal super PAC controlled by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, provided $150,000 in February to Coloradans for a Level Playing Field. The group wanted to remove state constitutional limits and redraw congressional district boundaries for the 2028 and 2030 elections, giving Democrats potential control of seven out of eight House districts, up from four currently.
Colorado’s Constitution limits redistricting efforts to once a decade, which the Colorado Supreme Court affirmed in a 2003 decision. In 2018, voters in the state strongly supported Amendments Y and Z, which established independent redistricting commissions to draw and review congressional and legislative maps for fairness.
Coloradans for a Level Playing Field sought on this fall’s ballot to strip out the constitutional prohibition on mid-decade redistricting and to sidestep the independent commission when it came to congressional maps.
But the Colorado Supreme Court struck down that ballot proposal, along with two others backed by Democrats and two backed by Republicans, on the grounds that they violated the state’s single-subject requirement for ballot initiatives.
What survived the fray is Amendment 86, which had been filed as a countermeasure to block the Democratic proposals.
What would Amendment 86 do if passed?
In addition to requiring approval from the independent redistricting commission and the state Supreme Court for mid-district congressional district changes, it would require a minimum of three public meetings before map modifications are adopted. It also would prohibit maps that divide communities of interest or purposely favor one political party over another.
What do supporters say?
Advance Colorado, a conservative political advocacy group, is behind the measure, one of a half-dozen it has on the November ballot. A Brighter Colorado and Fair Redistricting Colorado, run by Steve Ward, are the two issue committees supporting the measure. Supporters argue the amendment would safeguard public participation in off-cycle redistricting and ensure a fair review process, according to .
The American Revival PAC, founded by House leader Mike Johnson, gave $250,000 in August to the Fair Redistricting Colorado issue committee. Advance Colorado, which does not disclose its donors, is supporting the two committees.
What do opponents say?
An issue committee linked to Democrats, Colorado Draws the Line, opposes the measure. Although the measure purports to be in favor of fairness, the group argues on its website that it . Opponents also argue the measure would create a constitutional barrier if voters feel a change to normally adopted district maps is necessary, the Blue Book says.
Colorado Draws the Line had not reported raising or spending any money as of mid-September.
