Colorado
State services
To address the continuing threat of terrorism and to work with the federal Department of Homeland Security (created in 2002 following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001), homeland security in Colorado in 2003 operated under the authority of state statute; the public safety director was designated as the state homeland security advisor.
The Department of Education, under the direction of the State Board of Education, supervises and makes policy decisions for all public elementary and secondary schools. The State Board is made up of seven elected representatives from the state's congressional districts, plus the Commissioner of Education, who is hired by the State Board. The Board of Regents of the University of Colorado governs the operations of that institution as well as its affiliates, the Colorado University Hospital, Children's Diagnostic Center, Psychiatric Hospital, and schools of medicine, nursing, and dentistry. All other state-run colleges, as well as the Colorado Historical Society, Council on the Arts and Humanities, and Advanced Technology Institute, are under the jurisdiction of the Department of Higher Education.
The Department of Transportation builds, operates, and maintains state roads. The Department of Social Services administers welfare, medical assistance, rehabilitation, and senior-citizens programs. Human resource planning and development are under the Department of Labor and Employment, and health conditions are monitored by the Department of Health and Environment. The Department of Institutions oversees mental health, youth services, and developmental disabilities programs. The state's correctional facilities are administered by the Department of Corrections.
All programs concerned with the protection and control of Colorado's natural resources are the responsibility of the Department of Natural Resources. Other state agencies include the Department of Agriculture, Department of Military Affairs, Department of Regulatory Agencies, Department of Public Safety, and Department of Law.
Colorado Presidential Vote by Political Parties, 1948–2000
| YEAR | ELECTORAL VOTE | COLORADO WINNER | DEMOCRAT | REPUBLICAN | PROGRESSIVE | SOCIALIST | SOC. LABOR |
| * Won US presidential election. | |||||||
| 1948 | 6 | *Truman (D) | 267,288 | 239,714 | 6,115 | 1,678 | — |
| 1952 | 6 | *Eisenhower (R) | 245,504 | 379,782 | 1,919 | CONSTITUTION 2,181 | — |
| 1956 | 6 | *Eisenhower (R) | 263,997 | 394,479 | — | 759 | 3,308 |
| 1960 | 6 | Nixon (R) | 330,629 | 402,242 | — | SOC. WORKERS 563 | 2,803 |
| 1964 | 6 | *Johnson (D) | 476,024 | 296,767 | — | 2,537 | — |
| 1968 | 6 | *Nixon (R) | 335,174 | 409,345 | AMERICAN IND. 60,813 | 235 | 3,016 |
| 1972 | 7 | *Nixon (R) | 329,980 | 597,189 | AMERICAN 17,269 | 666 | 4,361 |
| 1976 | 7 | Ford (R) | 460,801 | 584,278 | 397 | 1,122 | LIBERTARIAN 5,338 |
| 1980 | 7 | *Reagan (R) | 368,009 | 652,264 | STATESMAN 1,180 | CITIZENS 5,614 | 25,744 |
| 1984 | 8 | Reagan (R) | 454,975 | 821,817 | NEW ALLIANCE 2,491 | — | 11,257 |
| 1988 | 8 | *Bush (R) | 621,453 | 728,177 | — | 15,482 | |
| 1992 | 8 | *Clinton (D) | 629,681 | 562,850 | IND. (PEROT) 366,010 | 1,608 | 8,669 |
| 1996 | 8 | Dole (R) | 671,152 | 691,848 | 99,629 | GREEN (NADER) 25,070 | 12,392 |
| 2000 | *Bush, G. W. (R) | 738,227 | 883,748 | FREEDOM (BUCHANAN) 10,465 | 91,434 | 12,799 | |