Colorado’s one-party Democratic rulers have found the trick to controlling the state’s population growth: make Colorado unlivable.

High crime + high inflation + declining household incomes + housing and homelessness crises + drug nightmare + neglected infrastructure + failing K-12 schools = move somewhere else, despite the state’s unmatched climate and natural amenities.

A Common Sense Institute study released this week reveals a 70% drop in metro Denver’s net migration, from 44,000 in 2015 to 13,000 in 2025, signaling a mass exodus driven by policy failures. As residents flee to states like Utah and Arizona with rising economic, safety, and affordability indicators, voters must reject party-line loyalty and restore balance to Colorado’s governance just to stop the bleeding.

Indeed, many Coloradans want less population growth. But elitist, left-wing policies — decriminalize crime, over regulate private property and businesses, drive inflation, raise fees, flood the market with drugs — cannot be the solution. It all combines to make the state unlivable for middle- and low-income households that can’t buy their way out of chaos.

The numbers don’t lie. Since Democrats gained full control of every component of in-state governance, Colorado’s cost of living has soared, ranking it among the top 10 least affordable states. Throngs of people who know they’re miserable don’t know why, as media outlets tell them our uni-party rulers care so much about the poor. The opposite is true.

The state’s high inflation rate — driven mostly by excessive regulation of property and energy — has cost households $34,194–$42,079 since 2020, outpacing wage growth and eroding real incomes. The Pulse Poll (2023) found 40% of Coloradans “just getting by” and 10% “really struggling” financially, with renters and communities of color — yes, the same “people of color” the left feigns compassion for — hit hardest.

Housing costs are a key driver. Denver’s median home price hit $625,000 in 2024, and Colorado Springs rents jumped 47% from 2017 to 2023. Meanwhile, homelessness surged 90% since 2020, based on Common Sense Institute research and other sources.

The number of Colorado families with children experiencing homelessness increased by 134% in 2024, compared to the previous year, based on a federal report. A state with homeless children is one with a heart-wrenching crisis.

After Colorado’s one-party rulers decriminalized serious crimes under the guise of “criminal justice reform,” Denver’s violent crime rate rose 32% from 2019 to 2023, with car thefts up 88%, based on data from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Drug overdoses, fueled by fentanyl and sanctuary laws, claimed 1,800 lives in 2023 — a 20% increase year-over-year. As of this year, Colorado has the country’s second-highest rate of teenager overdose deaths.

Neglected infrastructure — Colorado’s roads rank 39th nationally — frustrates commuters, while K-12 education lags, with only 40% of third graders meeting reading proficiency in 2024. That’s down from 44% in 2019. These failures contrast sharply with Utah, where a 3.3% unemployment rate and $350,000 median home prices draw Coloradans seeking affordability.

The $43.9 billion 2025–2026 budget faces a $1.2 billion shortfall, forcing cuts to transportation and mental health while Medicaid costs skyrocket.

Sanctuary policies, often criticized by The Gazette, strain resources; ICE reports nine daily arrests this year, up 300% from 2024, amid public safety concerns. Meanwhile, states like Utah maintain modest budgets, low crime rates, and low taxes — all fostering economic growth.

Colorado’s quality of life, the country’s envy not long ago, is crumbling under one-party rule. Utah and Arizona thrive with pragmatic, balanced governance, attracting 25,000 and 30,000 net migrants annually, per U.S. Census data.

Colorado voters must break the far-left’s monopoly. Restoring checks and balances — electing leaders who prioritize affordability, safety, and education over ideology — is the only path to reclaiming the state’s historically high quality of life. Stop voting party lines; vote to restore the livability expected in nature’s utopia.