U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn has qualified for the Republican ballot in the 5th Congressional District after turning in a sufficient number of petition signatures, state officials said Wednesday, making the eight-term incumbent the first congressional candidate to secure a spot in Colorado’s June primary election.

“We had way more names than we actually needed,” Lamborn told Colorado Politics after learning he’s made the ballot. “It’s good to have people supporting me through this process.”

For congressional candidates, it takes 1,500 signatures from fellow party members to make the ballot. According to the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office, 2,297 of the 3,164 signatures Lamborn submitted were deemed valid.

Three other Republicans are also hoping to petition their way into the 5th CD primary: Navy veteran Rebecca Keltie, who ran last cycle as a third-party candidate; business owner Andrew Heaton; and, activist Christopher Mitchell.

The deadline to submit petitions is March 15.

Another Lamborn challenger, state Rep. Dave Williams, R-Colorado Springs, is bypassing the petition route and is instead planning to win a spot in the June 28 primary at the GOP’s April 8 congressional district assembly, where he’ll need the support of at least 30% of delegates to get on the ballot.

Four Democrats and four independent candidates are also running for the seat.

Lamborn said he’s also going through the assembly process, which kicked off Tuesday night in El Paso County with Republican precinct caucuses — though under party rules, he’ll only need to win votes from 10% of the delegates since he’s already qualified by petition.

“I’m taking the belt-and-suspenders approach — taking nothing for granted — so I’ll be going through the assembly, as well,” Lamborn said, adding that he is “keeping all options open.”

Four years ago, when Lamborn faced four challengers in the GOP primary, he withdrew from the district assembly just days before it convened after learning he’d qualified by petition.

“We have over 3,000 people already showing some kind of support,” Lamborn said Wednesday. “The assembly process, which is a time-honored process, only has a few hundred people.”

The 5th District includes most of El Paso County under boundaries approved last fall by an independent redistricting commission that left the heavily Republican seat with a smaller footprint than it had for the last decade, when it also covered all or portions of four adjacent Front Range counties. Created in 1972, the district has never sent a Democrat to Congress.

Williams greeted word that Lamborn had qualified for the ballot by repeating attacks he’s been lobbing at the incumbent since launching his campaign in December.

“It’s not surprising Doug Lamborn bought his way onto the ballot because he knows Republican voters at assembly are likely to reject him again, especially for his recent ethics scandal and RINO voting record,” Williams said in a text message, using an acronym that stands for “Republican in Name Only.”

Added Williams: “Doug had a bad caucus night yesterday, and he knew all along that he needed to hedge his bets.”

A House ethics panel announced in January that it will investigate allegations Lamborn misused official resources for personal and campaign purposes. The charges stem from a lawsuit filed last year by a former employee who claims Lamborn and top staffers downplayed safety concerns during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keltie said she’s awaiting results of Tuesday’s caucuses before deciding whether to continue pursuing delegates through the assembly but intends to turn in her petitions by early next week and is confident she’ll be on the ballot.

“We’re looking forward to a spirited race,” said Heaton, who joined the race last week. He added that his campaign is on track to submit petitions before the deadline.

Lamborn said he hopes to face as many primary opponents as possible.

“My belief is the more the merrier,” Lamborn said. “It’s a free country, and people are free to run for office. I look forward to a spirited debate.”

Lamborn, who hasn’t debated a primary opponent since 2014, declined to commit to debating any of his challengers this year.

“At this point, I’m the only one on the ballot, so it’s a little premature to even consider that,” he said.