Yolanda Avila has won the El Paso County Commission District 5 race, defeating incumbent Lauren Nelson by more than 5,000 votes in a district that covers central Colorado Springs. Avila previously served on the Colorado Springs City Council, and her victory marks a rare partisan shift on a board that has been dominated by Republicans for decades.
The Colorado Times Recorder described Avila as the first Democrat elected to the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners since the Nixon administration, a detail that underscores how unusual the win is for a county that has leaned conservative for generations. On election night, The Gazette reported that, as of 7:15 p.m., Avila held almost 59 points to Nelson's 41, though results were still preliminary at that point.
Nelson, the outgoing commissioner, is a former District 11 School Board member who was originally appointed to the county commission through a vacancy process, according to the same Gazette report. The newspaper's earlier voter guide confirmed Nelson as the Republican incumbent in the race, having been placed on the board after a vacancy rather than through a prior election win.
A District Drawn for the First Time in 2026
District 5's contest carried extra weight this year because it was the first general election held for the district following the county's 2023 redistricting process, the Gazette noted. The outlet described District 5 as encompassing central Colorado Springs, and commissioners elected there will serve four-year terms once seated. Per the Gazette's October voter guide, the county commission oversees county services and holds jurisdiction over unincorporated El Paso County.
Avila's win did not happen in isolation. The Colorado Times Recorder reported that El Paso County Democrats were celebrating wins up and down the ballot this cycle, flipping Republican seats at the federal, state, and county levels. Statewide, Rocky Mountain Voice reported that Democrats won all four of Colorado's statewide constitutional offices in the 2026 election, part of a broader pattern the outlet tracked as ballots continued to be tallied.
Counting Still Underway Statewide
As of Nov. 5, Rocky Mountain Voice reported that 2,618,500 Colorado ballots had been counted, representing just over 64 percent of active voters, with all 64 counties having completed election-night reporting but only two, Elbert and Garfield, having finished the full count. That statewide picture frames District 5's outcome as part of a results landscape that was still being finalized even as Avila's lead held.
What Avila Says She Wants to Do Next
In the Gazette's voter guide published ahead of the election, Avila laid out plans centered on accessibility and affordability. She said she would work to ensure easy access to county commissioners through the website, front reception, and town halls, and she named affordable housing as a spending priority, saying plainly that “so many people are priced out of the market.”
Those themes echoed through her campaign messaging about bringing residents closer to county government, a contrast she drew with the current structure of the board. Avila has said she wants to create more opportunities for residents to meet commissioners and weigh in on community decisions, and has talked about hosting town hall meetings in neighborhoods throughout District 5 once in office.
