In 2018, Colorado Democrats won control of the state Senate and the offices of the secretary of state and attorney general. It gave them total dominance over the state’s government for the first time since 1938 and cemented Colorado’s 15-year shift from reliably red to solidly blue.

That transformation, partially driven by changing demographics, was also spurred by a small group of wealthy Colorado liberals who poured millions into local elections starting in 2004. The successful strategy became known as the “Colorado Model,” and Democrats are working to export it to other red and purple states. It’s part of an ambitious plan to build permanent electoral majorities across the country.