DENVER – Here’s a look at the latest on Election Day in Colorado:
8:55 p.m.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado has won re-election to a second full term, defeating Republican challenger Darryl Glenn.
Bennet once was considered one of the most vulnerable Senate Democrats this year. But Glenn, a tea-party-aligned conservative from El Paso County, struggled to raise funds after national party leaders refused to endorse his candidacy.
Glenn also baffled many with his changing positions on whether he still endorsed Donald Trump after the disclosure of Trump’s lewd remarks about women last month.
Bennet raised millions early in his campaign and stressed his record of working with Republicans on such issues as funding for Zika virus research.
8:50 p.m.
Hillary Clinton has won the state of Colorado.
The Democratic presidential nominee is now slated to receive Colorado’s nine electoral votes.
Colorado has been a battleground state for several presidential elections. But analysts figured it favored Clinton from the outset because it is more affluent and better educated than the country as a whole. The Clinton campaign signaled its confidence when it stopped advertising on Colorado television in July.
But Trump continued to advertise in the state and visited multiple times. The Clinton campaign returned to Colorado airwaves only last week as the presidential contest tightened.
8:45 p.m.
Colorado has approved a proposition to allow terminally ill people to end their own lives.
The law requires that a mentally competent patient have a six-month prognosis and get two doctors to approve requests for life-ending medication.
It requires doctors to discuss alternatives with the patient as well as safe storage, tracking and disposal of lethal drugs, recognizing that a patient can change his or her mind.
Colorado becomes the fifth state to allow medically assisted suicide, joining Oregon, Washington, Vermont and California. Montana’s state Supreme Court has ruled that doctors can use a patient’s request for life-ending medication as a defense against any criminal charges linked to the death.
Opponents argued that the proposal would facilitate doctor-assisted suicide, especially after mistaken terminal diagnoses.
7:40 p.m.
A top state elections official says she is not aware that a statewide computer glitch is the reason Pueblo County is experiencing vote counting delays.
Deputy Secretary of State Stephanie Staiert said Tuesday that Pueblo’s lengthy ballot and problems with a new computer tabulation system the county acquired may have delayed some vote counting there.
Pueblo County Clerk Gilbert Ortiz said earlier his county may be slow to report results Tuesday night.
6:55 p.m.
Polls in Colorado will close at 7 p.m. MST after a judge denied the Colorado Democratic Party’s request to extend voting by two hours.
The head of the Colorado Democratic Party argued that voting hours should be extended to account for a 29-minute computer glitch Tuesday afternoon. The statewide glitch affected same-day voter registration and caused some voters to have to cast provisional ballots.
The Secretary of State opposed the extended hours. Deputy Secretary of State Stephanie Staiert says no one was prevented from voting because of the glitch.
6:35 p.m.
More election problems are being reported in Colorado.
This time, a southern Colorado county was forced to use paper provisional ballots long after a statewide computer glitch delayed same-day registrants.
Pueblo County Clerk Gilbert Ortiz says he is not asking that polls stay open beyond 7 p.m. MST. But he tells The Pueblo Chieftain that his county may be slow to report results Tuesday night.
About 160,000 people live in Pueblo County, about 100 miles south of Denver and about 100 miles north of the New Mexico state line.
Meanwhile, Democrats were in court in Denver on Tuesday evening seeking a two-hour extension because of the afternoon computer glitch that stalled same-day registration for 29 minutes.
6:15 p.m.
Voters in Boulder are considering Colorado’s first proposed tax on sugar-sweetened drinks.
The proposal to add a 2-cent tax for every ounce of sugary beverage has become the most expensive local ballot measure in Boulder history.
Mexico and France have both imposed tax surcharges on sugar-sweetened drinks. The measures are aimed at reducing obesity. Voters in Berkeley, California, became the first Americans to implement such a tax on sugary drinks in 2014.
Boulder’s version would not apply to diet sodas or 100-percent fruit juice.
5:55 p.m.
Marijuana is on the ballot in some Colorado jurisdictions.
The city of Denver is considering whether to allow some bars and restaurants to allow pot use if they wish. The measure would allow people to use marijuana inside if it isn’t burned, or to use pot outside in new designated smoking areas.
And the city and county of Pueblo are both voting on marijuana businesses. The measures would say that Pueblo bans commercial pot growing and selling in the recreational market. The Pueblo measures are being watched closely to gauge whether voters like marijuana businesses as neighbors once they get up and running.
Nine other states are considering medical or recreational pot legalization.
5:40 p.m.
Colorado Democrats are in court seeking to keep polls open an extra two hours Tuesday.
Democrats, Republicans and state elections officials were awaiting a judge Tuesday evening to see if polls will be ordered kept open until 9 p.m. MST.
The head of the Colorado Democratic Party says polls should be kept open to account for a 29-minute computer glitch Tuesday afternoon. The statewide glitch affected same-day voter registration and caused some voters to have to cast provisional ballots.
The Secretary of State is opposing the extended hours. Deputy Secretary of State Stephanie Staiert says no one was prevented from voting because of the glitch.
The spokeswoman for the secretary of state originally said Democrats wanted to keep polls open 25 minutes, but the Democrats are seeking two additional hours.
5 p.m.
Colorado Democrats are going to court to argue that the state should extend voting for 25 minutes to account for an afternoon computer glitch.
The Colorado Secretary of State announced that Democrats want the state to keep polls open in case any voters felt turned away Tuesday afternoon. The 29-minute computer glitch forced in-person voters to cast provisional ballots, and some county clerks were unable to process mail ballots that needed to have the signature verified.
Lynn Bartels, a spokeswoman for the Secretary of State’s Office, tweeted that the system goes down now and again. She says the Secretary of State’s Office is investigating the cause.
3:35 p.m.
The Colorado Secretary of State’s voter registration system is working again after it went down for almost half an hour during midday voting Tuesday.
The failure forced in-person voters to cast provisional ballots, and some county clerks were unable to process mail ballots that needed to have the signature verified.
Lynn Bartels, a spokeswoman for the Secretary of State’s Office, tweeted that the system goes down now and again. She says the Secretary of State’s Office is investigating the cause.
3:25 p.m.
The Colorado Secretary of State’s voter registration system in some parts of the state went down during midday voting Tuesday, forcing in-person voters to cast provisional ballots. Lynn Bartels, a spokeswoman for the Secretary of State’s Office, tweeted that some county clerks were unable to process mail ballots that need to have the signature verified.
It’s unclear when the system will become accessible. The cause of the failure also was unclear.
2:05 p.m.
Some Colorado voters checking the status of their ballots online are finding that they’ve been listed as rejected but officials say they’ll have time to make sure they get counted.
Ballots can be listed as rejected because a voter didn’t sign the envelope when returning their mail ballot or the signature looks different than the one on file in registration records. Also, first time Colorado voters are required to provide a copy of some identification with their ballot, and, if that’s missing from the envelope, those ballots will be listed as rejected too.
The spokeswoman for the secretary of state’s office, Lynn Bartels, says voters can go to their clerk’s office to prove the validity of their ballot on Election Day. But they also have up until eight days after to settle things which is one of the reasons the results posted Tuesday will be listed as “unofficial” results, subject to some changes.
The spokeswoman for the Boulder County clerk’s office, Mircalla (mer-KA’-luh) Wozniak, says the issue comes up every year but more people are looking up their status online this year, rather than just getting notified by a letter or email from the clerk.
10:25 a.m.
Colorado’s voters have a new right Tuesday — the ability to snap pictures of their own ballots and share those pictures on social media.
The state’s ban on so-called “ballot selfies” was put on hold Friday. A Denver judge sided with a group of voters who said the 1891 ban is outdated and infringes on free speech.
State elections officials warned that allowing “ballot selfies” could lead to long lines and voter confusion. That’s because polling places may still ban cameras in the voting booths, meaning “ballot selfies” could not be made during in-person voting.
The judge ruled the polling-site confusion wasn’t enough to prevent people from being able to share their ballots if they wish. Laws against vote-buying and voter intimidation remain in effect.
8:55 a.m.
People are dropping off their ballots and voting in person around Colorado in the final day of the election.
As of Tuesday morning, 2.2 million people had already voted but everyone else has until 7 p.m. to either return their ballot at a drop box or cast their ballot at a voting center.
Democrats were quicker to cast their ballots this year but Republicans have overtaken them. Of those who have already voted, 35 percent are registered Republicans and 34 percent are Democrats. Thirty percent are unaffiliated.
Voters can find out where they can drop off their ballots or vote in person at GoVoteColorado.com.
7:15 a.m.
People are dropping off their ballots and voting in person around Colorado in the final day of the election.
Nearly 2 million people had already voted as of Monday but everyone else has until 7 p.m. Tuesday to either return their ballot at a drop box or cast their ballot at a voting center.
More Republicans have turned in their ballots than Democrats so far.
This is the first presidential election in Colorado to be conducted mainly by mail ballot.
