Victor Marx takes a narrow lead over Barbera Kirkmeyer in Colorado Republican primary

Colorado's Republican race for governor remains tight, as Victor Marx surged past State Senator Barbara Kirkmeyer on Wednesday evening, taking a narrow lead after trailing since polls closed Tuesday night. Kirkmeyer opened the evening with a commanding advantage, at one point leading by nearly 8,000 votes. But as additional ballots were counted, Marx pulled ahead by about 2,100 votes.

With roughly 506,000 Republican ballots cast, Marx had about 202,000 votes to Kirkmeyer's 200,000, leaving just a single percentage point between the two candidates. Former state Representative Scott Bottoms remained in third place.

Despite Marx's late surge, the contest was still considered too close to call.

The eventual Republican nominee will advance to the general election to face Democrat Phil Weiser, Colorado's current attorney general. Weiser secured his party's nomination by defeating U.S. Senator Michael Bennet by nearly nine percentage points.

As of 9 pm Wednesday, Victor Marx had 202,323 votes compared to Barb Kirkmeyer’s 200,142. Both technically still have 39% of the votes each. Scott Bottoms has 105,103, or nearly 21%.

The race will determine who succeeds term-limited Governor Jared Polis. Colorado has elected just one Republican governor in the past 50 years, making the November contest one to watch.