Denver Clerk and Recorder Paul López is making a few adjustments to how the city’s two at-large city council members are elected.

In the 2025 Coordinated Election, voters passed Referred Measure 2G, which eliminated the city’s long-time “single shot” practice, under which all at-large candidates appeared in a single race on the ballot, and the two candidates receiving the most votes were elected to the two at-large positions, regardless of the number of votes received. 

Beginning with the 2027 municipal election, the at-large office will be divided into two separate seats: City Council at-large A and City Council at-large B, with only one candidate elected to each seat, according to a statement released Monday by the Clerk’s office. 

To win, a candidate must receive a majority of votes cast, either in the April general election or the June runoff. 

Campaign finance limits, petitioning rules and all other election processes will remain the same. 

Denver’s at-large positions were, prior to the Nov. 4 election, the only city offices not elected by a majority of the votes.

Candidates planning to run for either of the two seats must complete a candidate affidavit and declare their intention for at-large A or at-large B. 

Candidates who have previously filed for an at-large position were notified of the change and must submit updated affidavits, the Clerk’s office stated. 

City officials have argued that the “single-shot” voting practice  “incentivizes voters to waste their second vote in order not to harm the chances of their first-choice candidate from winning.”

In the nine elections since 1991, sponsors of the original legislation to put the measure on the November ballot say at-large winners have won with vote percentages ranging from 16.6% to 41.03% of the vote.

The average winning percentage for the first-place candidate was 32.77%, and the average for the second-place candidate was 24.41%, according to city officials.

In 2023, council districts with competitive races saw undervoting rates that were more than double or quadruple those in the at-large race.

Those who wish to change the seat they are seeking may do so by filing a new candidate affidavit and updating their committee registration in SearchLight Denver. 

The petition circulation window for the 2027 municipal election begins on Dec. 16, 2026. 

Candidates wanting to change offices must do so before circulating petitions for the office they intend to seek. 

Candidates with questions may contact the campaign finance office at campaignfinance@denvergov.org.