Colorado Democratic Party and Swing Left Announce Ground Truth Voter Conversations in Colorado’s Most Competitive House District
Swing Left’s Ground Truth program in Colorado’s 8th District is part of a nationwide expansion launching January 24
DENVER, CO (January 23, 2026) — Swing Left, one of the largest drivers of grassroots action helping Democrats win competitive races nationwide, today announced an expansion of its Ground Truth voter conversations into Colorado’s 8th Congressional District (CO-08), one of the most competitive GOP-held House districts in the country. The Colorado Democratic Party will be one of the supporters of this effort.
The Colorado Democratic Party will encourage volunteers to canvass through Swing Left’s Ground Truth, an innovative new national program focused on listening to voters, rebuilding trust with communities and strengthening Democratic general election efforts. Swing Left will also share insights collected by our volunteers with partners to shape campaign organizing, messaging, and follow-up outreach strategies rooted in community needs.
CO-08 was decided by fewer than 2,500 votes in 2024, making it the second-closest Republican-held House race in the country. The district is currently represented by Republican Gabe Evans, who cast the deciding vote for the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill,” jeopardizing health care for nearly 1 in 3 of his own constituents and taking food off the tables of up to 29,494 households in his district to pay for tax cuts for billionaires. Independent analysts including the Cook Political Report, Sabato’s Crystal Ball, and Inside Elections currently rate the race as a Toss Up.
“We can’t wait for the Congressional primary to start speaking to voters—especially in a district as close and consequential as CO-08. Ground Truth is one of the programs we believe in and trust to gather the deep voter insights that will help the eventual Democratic nominee compete from day one of the general election,” said Shad Murib, Chair of the Colorado Democratic Party.
“Ground Truth will help develop authentic relationships with voters in a more meaningful, lasting way,” added Murib.
To launch this effort in Colorado, Swing Left will host a 1-hour virtual event, joined by the Colorado Democratic Party, for interested volunteers on Saturday, January 31, outlining what’s at stake in CO-08, how the Ground Truth program will expand early voter contact, and all the ways volunteers can get involved.
“Colorado is central to the fight for the House, and CO-08 shows just how narrow the path to power really is,” said Yasmin Radjy, Executive Director of Swing Left. “The Colorado Democratic Party has long been a national leader in innovative voter contact and grassroots organizing, and Ground Truth will expand on their critical work by starting earlier, listening more deeply, and providing greater access to real, human insights from voters. This helps take the guesswork out of campaigning and ensures the eventual Democratic nominee in CO-08 can spend their time, money, and people power in the most impactful ways.”
Ground Truth is a volunteer-powered program created in response to a growing challenge Democrats face nationwide: a widening trust gap with voters, especially in communities and neighborhoods long written off by hyper-targeted outreach, that can’t be closed with last-minute outreach or narrow targeting.
Ground Truth volunteers engage voters in longer, two-way conversations—often a year or more before Election Day—and capture what voters are experiencing using new technology Swing Left helped design. Those insights are then aggregated and shared with partners so they can better understand voter concerns, identify persuadable voters early, and shape outreach that reflects what people in their districts care about.
“To win close races and build lasting majorities, rebuilding trust has to start with listening,” said Radjy. “Ground Truth is how we do that. It’s about showing up early, talking to everyone—including voters often overlooked or misclassified in traditional voter files— to connect with voters and win back the House.”
This early, listening-first approach is especially critical in House races that are routinely decided by a few hundred or a few thousand votes and often follow late primaries. In those races, campaigns have limited time to reach Republicans, Independents, and persuadable Democrats. Ground Truth helps fill that gap by building infrastructure early—so Democrats aren’t starting from scratch when the general election begins.
Swing Left is actively working with partners, including state parties and campaigns. After completing its pilot phase last fall, Swing Left will publicly launch Ground Truth for volunteers nationwide beginning January 24, with canvassing and phone banking opportunities rolling out across competitive House districts where control of Congress will be decided, including CO-08. Ground Truth canvassing and phone banking opportunities will take place throughout 2026, giving volunteers multiple ways to participate and build sustained organizing momentum in the district over the course of the year.
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About the Colorado Democratic Party
The Colorado Democratic Party works to elect Democrats at every level of the ballot, build durable governing majorities, and advance opportunity and justice for all Coloradans.
About Swing Left
Since launching in 2017, Swing Left has proven the effectiveness of early, sustained, and strategic grassroots organizing. Our 1 million members have raised more than $140 million for Democratic candidates, organizations, and voter mobilization efforts, and reached more than 50 million voters through door knocks, phone calls, and letters.
In 2024 alone, Swing Left volunteers knocked on 1.6 million doors, made 3.8 million calls, wrote more than 11 million letters, and raised more than $25 million—helping Democrats in swing districts buck national trends and secure razor-thin victories. Swing Left focuses exclusively on general election races in the most competitive districts to help Democrats win power where it matters most.
For more information, visit www.swingleft.org and www.ourgroundtruth.org.
