Mike Johnston took the early lead in the race for mayor, the unofficial and early count shows. 

Johnston, a former state senator, secured about 25% of the votes in the first tally at 7 p.m.

In second place is Kelly Brough, a former chamber of commerce executive. She held 23% of the vote. 

About 90,000 of the votes had been tallied so far.

A cheer went up in the crowd of several hundred people who gathered at Mike Johnston’s watch party at a Lower Downtown hotel when the first round of results posted on a screen at the front of the room showing Johnston with a narrow lead over Brough, whose supporters are gathered about a half mile away.

Cheers also erupted among Brough’s supporters, competing with the loud music playing in the ReelWorks Event Center. 

“I’m feeling great. I don’t know what else to say,” Kelly Brough said right before the first polling results were posted. “My goal was to make sure voters knew who I was and what my plans were.”

Brough said she “felt a lot of love” from Denver voters as the campaign picked up. Her final “Coffee with Kelly” events drew 30 to 40 people each as election day neared.  

The two candidates were among three candidates in a tie in a poll commissioned by the Denver Gazette, 9News and Metropolitan State University. They also dominated the fundraising race, managing to bring in well over $2.7 million in direct contributions and matching funds combined.  

A cluster of candidates is running behind Brough and Johnston. Of the group, Lisa Calderon sits in third place at 14.4% and Andy Rougeot at 13.47%. Leslie Herod has so far secured 9%.   

Calderon’s campaign said the night is still young. 

“We’re seeing exactly what we expected,” Sarah Lake, campaign manager for Calderon, said. “Our voters are late voters and we know that black and brown communities and low income communities are the ones who tend to turn in ballots late.”

Lake added: “We are going to show that Denver is a truly progressive city who wants new leadership that’s going to represent its people and make sure that we’re leading with proven solutions to our biggest challenges.” 

Meanwhile, Debbie Ortega’s campaign, too, isn’t ready to concede yet. 

Johnston had outlined an ambitious plan if elected mayor, among them his proposal to end homelessness in Denver within his first term. He also wants to build tens of thousands of new homes within eight years.  

Kelly Brough has similarly focused on homelessness and housing. Her plan calls for the creation of several sanctioned camping sites, possibly modeled after the Safe Outdoor Spaces Denver currently utilizes, while the city builds up its housing stock. She also plans to streamline the building permitting process, so it takes less time for builders to get approval of their designs, which, she said, would result in more homes in Denver.   

Brough has led the fundraising efforts for weeks and continues to do so. Including matching funds from the city, her campaign has raised $1.4 million. Johnston is not far behind, hauling in a total of $1.3 million. Both have benefitted from a significant influx in independent expenditure support from groups that are prohibited from coordinating with the campaigns.

The outside support for Johnston stood at $2.2 million on election day, while Brough attracted $984,000 in support.

The next mayor of Denver faces gargantuan problems magnified by the city’s unique characteristics, notably a homelessness crisis, a housing affordability challenge and a sense that the streets are not always safe.

Whoever wins the seat could, in theory, hold on to it for the next 12 years, which makes this year’s contest a consequential election.

Multimedia editor Tom Hellauer contributed to this article. Tom can be reached at tom.hellauer@gazette.com.