Who is running for Colorado Court of Appeals, Retention: Judge Elizabeth L. Harris in 2026?

Judge, Colorado Court of Appeals

Elizabeth L. Harris was appointed to the Colorado Court of Appeals in 2015 and is on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot for retention¹². Before the bench she worked at the Federal Public Defender's Office, a private law firm, and then her own appellate litigation firm from 2013². She clerked for Judge John Porfilio of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit².

• Judge, Colorado Court of Appeals, since 2015²
• Opened her own firm focused on appellate litigation in 2013; five years at the Federal Public Defender's Office in Colorado; later with Jacobs Chase, then Husch Blackwell²
• Law clerk to Judge John Porfilio, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit; Georgetown University and New York University School of Law²
• Appointed to the Colorado Court of Appeals in 2015². She is on the ballot for a yes or no retention vote¹.
• Bar poll: Colorado Office of Judicial Performance Evaluation 2026 finding (an official state commission evaluation, not an endorsement). Recommendation: "Meets Performance Standards." As published: "The State Commission on Judicial Performance finds that Judge Elizabeth L. Harris, by vote of 9-0 with one commissioner absent, and one commission vacancy, MEETS PERFORMANCE STANDARDS".
• Public discipline: Searched the Colorado Commission on Judicial Discipline's public Determination Database on 2026-10-06 (20 public determinations, 1984 to 2025) and its list of public court filings: no determination or filing names this judge. Discipline short of a public proceeding is confidential and is not listed by name.³