Hernandez — a teacher and community organizer who was elected to the seat by a vacancy committee last summer to replace former Rep. Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez — trailed Espenoza, a former counsel for the U.S. Department of Justice, throughout the night. 

As of 9 p.m., Espenoza led Hernandez by 12 points, 54% to 46%. 

The winner of this Democratic primary election will face Republican Jack Daus, who ran unopposed in his party’s primary. 

House District 4 encompasses western Denver, including the Highlands Square and Highlands Garden Village neighborhoods and bordering the City of Wheat Ridge and the Lakeside neighborhood.

The district leans heavily Democratic, with 21,012 registered Democrats, 3,578 Republicans, and 27,579 unaffiliated voters. That means Espenoza will have the clear advantage in the November election.  

Hernandez and Espenoza had faced off in 2023, when they competed to fill the seat of Gonzales-Gutierrez, who was elected to the Denver City Council. A vacancy committee ultimately picked Hernandez, who took office in September. 

The daughter of migrant farmworkers from Colorado, Espenoza was the first Mexican-American to become an appellate judge on the highest immigration court in the country and the second Latina to pass the bar in Utah and become a migrant attorney. She told Colorado Politics she believes her experience as an attorney, professor and judge will help her represent her constituents.

“As a pragmatic progressive, I understand that every issue is complicated and I know that solutions come through collaboration and the capacity to listen to all of the stakeholders,” she said. 

Espenoza received the backing of outgoing Senate President Steve Fenberg of Boulder, as well as by former Rep. Dan Pabon, former state Sen. Polly Baca, former Denver City Councilman Rafael Esponoza, and Denver Public Schools Board Member Marlene de la Rosa. 

Hernandez, meanwhile, received the endorsements from a number of his fellow legislators, including Reps. Julie Gonzales and Javier Mabrey of Denver, as well as Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez, also of Denver. Gonzales-Gutierrez also endorsed Hernandez, as has Denver City Council President Jamie Torres. 

Hernandez, 27, faced a backlash last year for attending a rally advertised to be “in support of Palestinian resistance in Gaza” hours after the Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing 1,200 people, kidnapping 250 and sparking a war. A flyer for the event read, “resistance is justified when people are occupied,” referring to territories captured and occupied by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967, including the West Bank and Gaza Strip.  

Hernández later apologized. In a video posted on his account on Friday afternoon, Hernandez also condemned Hamas for attacking civilians and said he was sorry for his actions. 

In November, when pro-Palestinian protesters disrupted a House session, several lawmakers, including Hernandez, cheered them. Hernandez said in a post on X that he is “standing in strong solidarity with Coloradans who bravely stood up and disrupted our job this morning calling for a Ceasefire in Gaza. Over a majority of Americans now support a Ceasefire. I urge my colleagues to listen.” 

He also attended a pro-Palestinian protest at the Auraria Campus in Denver several months ago.

Hernandez earlier told Colorado Politics his top priority if elected would be to full fund public education. 

“As a teacher, I shouldn’t have to rely on GoFundMes or out-of-pocket expenses to support my students,” he said. “To achieve this, we must end the financial restraints of TABOR to both protect and truly fully fund public education as well as restructuring our state’s tax code to benefit all people rather than just the rich. Fully funding education is an essential investment in our children — our communities depend on their growth and success.”