Gov. Jared Polis won a convincing and expected reelection victory after opening an early and dominant lead over challenger Heidi Ganahl on Tuesday night, extending Democrats’ record-setting control of the state’s chief executive and signaling the limits of Republican gains.

“It has been the honor of my life to serve as your governor over the past four years, and it will be my honor to continue serving as your governor for the next four years,” a beaming Polis told supporters just before 8 p.m. at Democrat watch party.

As results continued to trickle in, Polis’s lead continued to balloon. By 7:45 p.m., he was up nearly 300,000 votes — 702,000 to Ganahl’s 424,000. Fox News, ABC and NBC had all called the race for Polis shortly after polls closed at 7 p.m. The Associated Press called Polis’s race shortly after 8 p.m.

As Polis spoke to a cheering crowd, a quiet ballroom at the Republican Party’s watch party watched national results trickle in Tuesday evening. Ganahl was expected to leave the event early, as well, though she was chatting with supporters in the lobby shortly before polls closed.

This story is from The Denver Post.