About 46 percent of likely voters in Denver support Mayor Mike Johnston, but an equal number oppose him as he enters his third year in office, according to a recent poll.
Overall, the survey from the Colorado Polling Institute found that support for Johnston has held steady since 2024, but a growing number of people have unfavorable opinions of him.
That makes Johnston a little less popular than the following concepts and organizations: socialism, capitalism, local schools, and the police, all of which fared a few points better in Colorado Polling Institute’s recent survey of the city.
Even as voters were split on Johnston, more were optimistic about the state of the city, the pollsters said.
The poll also identified voters’ top issues, with homelessness, affordable housing and crime topping the list.
The poll, conducted by the bipartisan Colorado Polling Institute, included 417 people contacted through phone interviews across Denver. The margin of error was 4.8 percent.
Voters are more optimistic about the city, but opposition to Johnston may growing.
The poll found about 51 percent said the city was “definitely” on the right track, while 41 percent said it was “definitely” on the wrong track.
“What's notable here is that in each of our last three surveys, we've seen a small but steady trend towards optimism,” said Kevin Ingham, a Democratic pollster with Aspect Strategic, which helped conduct the survey.
”Back in 2023, two years ago, voters were evenly divided on the direction of the city. But in 2024, voters started to feel a little bit more positive … and now voters are more optimistic than pessimistic by a 10-point margin.”
Those who support Johnston said he’s getting things done, standing up to President Donald Trump and making progress on downtown Denver.
But while the mayor has maintained a relatively stable favorability rating, he faces growing dissatisfaction in his Democratic base, Ingham said. Opposition to Johnston was 38 percent in a poll last year from CPI; this year's poll found 46 percent in opposition.
The change was greater than the polls' margins of error.
Meanwhile, more than 70 percent of likely voters said they felt safe or very safe in Denver. But the numbers were reversed for Republicans and conservatives, with less than 30 percent of those respondents feeling safe. Older voters and women were also somewhat less likely to feel safe.
Impressions of the Denver Police Department have been improving. About 51 percent had a positive opinion of the department, and nearly half wanted more police officers.
The topic of immigration has rapidly dropped in importance to voters, the poll found. Fewer than one in ten people were worried about the issue. The number of immigrants arriving in Denver has dropped sharply in recent years. Mentions of homelessness also declined since 2023.
Republican Lori Weigel, a pollster with New Bridge Strategy, pointed out that optimism has also risen regarding downtown Denver — a major focal point for Johnston.
Vibrant Denver had early support from most respondents.
The poll found positive signs for Johnston’s Vibrant Denver bond proposal, which will ask voters to approve $950 million in debt for infrastructure and maintenance projects.
About 65 percent of poll respondents said they would likely support the bond, while 30 percent said they are leaning toward opposing the measure.
But more than half said they hadn’t heard anything about the bond. That leaves plenty of room for both sides to try to sway opinions.
“I will note that among those who had actually seen the most — who had said they had seen something about it, support was actually significantly lower,” said Weigel.
Voters also were polled about another big city project, the construction of bus rapid transit on Colfax Avenue. About 39 percent said they were optimistic about the project, while 38 percent were pessimistic.
Voters have worries, too.
There’s rising concern about the city’s fiscal health — which makes sense with Denver facing a $250 million budget deficit that has already led to the elimination of hundreds of government jobs.
Only 4 percent of Denverites are “very confident” in how Denver is managing taxpayer dollars, and 48 percent are not confident.
A plurality of respondents said Johnston has made no progress on the affordability of housing in Denver — a top priority for his administration.
“That’s coming up because lots of voters are considering whether they want to live in the city of Denver,” Weigel said.
One in three said they had considered moving to a different city or town. For renters, 43 percent are considering moving out of their current places, either out of town or to different neighborhoods.
