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 5 ads paid for by Victor 2026 Merch. Show all 15 ads
Paid for by Victor 2026 Merchfrom 2026-08-18 to 2026-08-23spend $900–99940,000–44,999 impressions
We’re coming back to the Western Slope this week and have a lot of events scheduled between Lt. Gov. Nominee, George Washington Market, and myself.
We invite you all out to these free events to come say hi and ask your questions, and invite your friends and family. You can go to Victor2026.com for all the details.
Wed. Aug. 19th - Kremmling - Valley Life Church
Wed. Aug. 19th - Bayfield - La Plata County GOP Event
**George Washington Markert only**
Thurs. Aug. 20th - Montrose - Montrose County Lincoln Day Dinner
Thurs. Aug. 20th - Ouray County - True Grit Cafe
**George Washington Markert only**
Thurs. Aug. 20th - Cortez - Cortez Chamber
**George Washington Markert only**
Fri. Aug. 21st - Palisade - Talbot Cider Co.
Fri. Aug. 21st - Delta - Delta GOP HQ
**George Washington Markert only**
Fri. Aug. 21st - Grand Junction - Fellowship Church (Rally)
**Both Victor and George in attendance**
Sat. Aug. 22nd - Montrose - Montrose Courthouse Parking Lot
Sat. Aug. 22nd - Delta - Cowboy at the Cross Church
Sat. Aug. 22nd - Delta - Delta County Lincoln Day Dinner
Sat. Aug. 22nd - Ridgway - Hartwell Park
**George Washington Markert only**
Sun. Aug. 23rd - Gunnison - Gunnison GOP Event
Mom. Aug. 24th - Chaffee County - Schedule coming soon
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Victor 2026 Merchfrom 2026-08-15 to 2026-08-16spend $0–99100–999 impressions
Life's too short for weak coffee.
The Victor Marx Brew is a bold, full-bodied blend built for people who start early and finish what they start.
Guatemalan volcanic highlands. Ethiopian heritage beans. Roasted in Aurora, Colorado. Dark chocolate up front, mild sweet fruit in the middle, toasted almond on the finish.
$25 a bag — and 20% comes off automatically at checkout.
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Victor 2026 Merchfrom 2026-08-12 to 2026-08-16spend $200–29910,000–14,999 impressions
If you're in the hardest chapter of your life right now, this book was written by someone who's been there.
Victor Marx's story doesn't skip the ugly parts. It walks straight through them — what he survived as a kid, the years he carried it in silence, and what finally broke the cycle.
You don't have to care about politics to need a story like this. You just have to be someone who's still fighting.
The Victor Marx Story, Fourth Edition — 20% off today.
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.
Paid for by Victor 2026 Merchfrom 2026-08-02 to 2026-08-062 variantsspend $1,100–1,29855,000–64,998 impressions
Good news — the sale is extended. Through Tuesday, August 4 only, take 20% OFF sitewide at the Victor Marx Merch Store.
Hats, shirts, flags, yard signs, coffee, books, bundles — now is the best time to stock up and show your support.
Every purchase helps spread the message across Colorado and supports the campaign's grassroots efforts.
The sale ends Tuesday, August 4 at 11:59 PM MT.
After that, prices return to normal.
👉 Shop now: victor2026merch.com
Thank you for your support — we couldn't do this without you.
Team Victor Marx
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
Paid for by Victor 2026 Merchfrom 2026-07-31 to 2026-08-03spend $700–79945,000–49,999 impressions
Through Sunday, August 2 only — take 20% OFF sitewide at the Victor Marx Merch Store.
Hats, shirts, flags, yard signs, coffee, books, bundles — now is the best time to stock up and show your support.
Every purchase helps spread the message across Colorado and supports the campaign's grassroots efforts.
The sale ends August 2 at 11:59 PM MT. After that, prices return to normal.
👉 Shop now: victor2026merch.com
Thank you for your support — we couldn't do this without you.
Team Victor Marx
no techniques found
Looks up the ad's factual claims in fact-checkers, primary sources and wire reporting. Takes up to a minute.
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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