Colorado Governor 2026: the ads, and who's paying for them
Phil Weiser (Democrat), Victor Marx (Republican), Eric Mulder (Libertarian), Stephen Hamilton (Constitution), Jeff Peckman (Unity), Erik Underwood (Approval Voting) and Greg Lopez (independent) are the candidates for governor of Colorado in the November 3, 2026 general election. Semblen has analyzed 15 ads in this race; 7 used at least one manipulation technique, most often loaded language and glittering generalities.
Phil Weiser (DEM), Victor Marx (REP), Eric Mulder (LIB), Stephen Hamilton (CON), Jeff Peckman (UNI), Erik Underwood (APV), Greg Lopez (IND).
On the ballot as listed by Colorado Secretary of State, 2026 General Election official candidate list. 15 ads analyzed, 7 with at least one technique in the copy.
Newest first. The paid-for-by line is the advertiser's own filing. Updated 2026-10-08.
6 of 14 (43%) flagged · Glittering Generalities (4), Loaded Language (4), Appeal to Prejudice (3)
YouTube
1 of 1 flagged · Appeal to Fear (1), Bandwagon Appeal (1), Black-and-White Fallacy (1)
Reported Meta spend
$5,000–7,277 on all ads, $1,500–2,688 on flagged ads · Meta reports ranges; these are the sums of their ends
Example
“irresponsible corporations” — Loaded Language, paid for by Phil Weiser for Colorado
· the flagged ad with the highest reported spend that shows the most common technique
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Leaving out the softer ones (loaded language, glittering generalities, slogans, exaggeration, repetition): 47% of ads.
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Money in this race
Candidates for governor report their fundraising to Colorado's state campaign-finance office, not the FEC. This page doesn't cover those reports yet, so it shows no money figures.
The ads
15 ads, newest first. Video transcripts are shown as the model read them, without caption cues like [music].
Showing the 3 ads paid for by Phil Weiser for Colorado. Show all 15 ads
Paid for by Phil Weiser for Coloradofrom 2026-10-013 variantsspend $100–39728,000–34,997 impressions
When Donald Trump tried to punish Colorado for not falling in line with adopting his reckless policies, Phil got to work and sued his administration.
“The only response is to fight back and to defend your principles.” – Phil Weiser, The Colorado Sun.
That’s exactly what he did. Through legal action, Phil has fought to protect our elections, our immigration laws, and defend Coloradans from the administration’s reckless tariffs - working to bring down costs.
As Governor, he’ll never stop fighting for Colorado.
Loaded Language: The words 'punish' and 'reckless' are emotionally charged terms designed to trigger a negative reaction toward Trump rather than neutrally describe policy disputes — for example: 'punish Colorado' and 'reckless policies'
Appeal to Prejudice: The framing of Colorado as a victim of an outside aggressor ('not falling in line') implicitly appeals to in-group identity and state pride, positioning Colorado residents as a unified group under attack — for example: 'not falling in line with adopting his reckless policies'
Glittering Generalities: The phrase uses vague, emotionally positive language about 'fighting for Colorado' without specifying any concrete policies or actions — for example: 'never stop fighting for Colorado'
Loaded Language
Appeal to Prejudice
Glittering Generalities
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Phil Weiser for Coloradofrom 2026-10-013 variantsspend $1,100–1,397145,000–179,997 impressions
As your Attorney General, I’ve never backed down from defending Colorado from irresponsible corporations.
I launched a nationwide lawsuit against Meta to hold them responsible for an addictive algorithm that harmed young people - and won.
Under the settlement, Colorado will receive close to $615 million over nine years - which will go directly to protecting and restoring the safety and mental health of children in Colorado.
The action “is an important step forward and I welcome Meta’s decision to accept responsibility and to collaborate with the multistate coalition to protect kids who deserve better.” – Phil Weiser, CBS KKTV 11
Together, we’ll build a better future for Colorado.
Loaded Language: The phrase 'irresponsible corporations' uses emotionally charged language to frame corporations negatively without specific evidence — for example: irresponsible corporations
Appeal to Prejudice: The phrase 'your Attorney General' invokes an in-group identity appeal, positioning the speaker as belonging to and defending the audience's community — for example: your Attorney General
Glittering Generalities: The phrase uses vague, emotionally positive language about unity and a 'better future' without any specific meaning or policy substance — for example: 'better future for Colorado'
Loaded Language
Appeal to Prejudice
Glittering Generalities
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Phil Weiser for Coloradofrom 2026-10-013 variantsspend $200–49747,000–53,997 impressions
Throughout my campaign for Governor, I’ve traveled across our state to meet voters face to face and really listen to the issues that matter most to them.
When I talk to Coloradans, affordability, particularly with regard to housing, is often the first topic on their minds. That’s why I got to work on a plan to fix the problem.
As your Attorney General, I’ve held big landlords like Greystar responsible for cheating Coloradans with deceptive schemes like junk fees - suing them and winning - and have put money back in the pockets of hard-working people across our state.
I won’t stop there. That’s why I made a plan to add affordable housing to communities across our state - for renters and owners - to make Colorado a more affordable place to live.
That’s the kind of Governor I’ll be.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
An email when new ads come in from either side or the outside groups: the techniques, the words doing the work, and who paid. And each debate's analysis the morning after. One-click unsubscribe.
An ad is on this page because its own "Paid for by" line is a campaign in this race; or it ran mostly in CO and names a nominee for governor — unless its sponsor is a campaign for some other office (a U.S. Senate or House campaign included), or it also names CO's Senate nominees, in which case it is on the Senate race's page. Ads from outside groups appear alongside the campaigns' own.
The candidates are the ones certified for the November ballot, from the source linked at the top. Governors are state offices, so there are no FEC filings behind this page: no money figures, and outside groups are placed on a side only when they are a campaign or a party committee.
Campaigns run one text as many separate ads. Identical text from the same sponsor is one card here, marked with its number of variants.
A technique is a specific manipulative move in the wording, found by our model and explained in one line. It is not a claim that the ad is false.
Claims are checked when a reader asks: press "Check this ad's claims" on a card. The check runs once and its result is shown to everyone afterwards. The ten ads with the most money behind them in each race are checked ahead of time.
Claim verdicts say what the cited sources say. A verdict that an ad is wrong or misleading is shown only when it cites an established fact-checker or an institutional record — Congress, a federal agency, a court — and its confidence is not low; a weaker one is not shown at all. Each verdict shows what it rests on and how confident it is. If we got one wrong, press Disagree: a verdict that readers dispute and no one defends comes down.
Video ads come from the campaigns' own YouTube channels; the transcript is analyzed. Meta ads are analyzed on their text; their video and images are not, yet.
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