You may be voting in a new district in Colorado this election. Here's why, and how to check.

If you open your ballot this October and see you’re voting in a new district for the Colorado legislature or Congress, you might think you got the wrong one.

But don’t fret, you’re likely just in one of the Northern Colorado areas impacted by recent redistricting.

Last year, the Colorado Supreme Court approved new district maps from an independent redistricting commission that split up parts of Larimer County for the first time in the congressional districts and separated cities in different ways in Colorado House of Representatives districts.

Here’s what you need to know about why the state redistricted and how it may have impacted you.

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Why — and how — did Colorado redistrict?

Redistricting isn't uncommon, but it doesn't exactly happen often. States are required to redistrict every 10 years after the census is completed.

In 2018, Colorado voters approved Amendments Y and Z, which transferred the responsibility for redrawing congressional and legislative districts from the Colorado legislature and the Reapportionment Commission to newly created independent commissions. Colorado is one of the first states to conduct redistricting in this way.

Congressional districts are supposed to be relatively equal in population. Each of the eight congressional districts will serve 721,714 people, according to the state’s redistricting information.

State legislative districts have a bit looser population guidelines but have target population numbers for how many each district should represent. Each of 35 state Senate districts will have about 164,963 people, and the 65 state House districts will have about 88,826 people.

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How did redistricting change Colorado House districts?

There were a few significant changes in the new House map that impacted Northern Colorado.

The House map greatly changed House District 65, which used to cover much of eastern Colorado and now covers Severance, Timnath, Wellington and Windsor.

District 53 previously covered west Fort Collins, but now covers north Fort Collins.

District 52, which previously covered east Fort Collins, now covers south Fort Collins.

District 51, which covers Loveland, was also reduced in size and stretches less to the west now.

How did redistricting change Colorado Senate districts?

In Northern Colorado, the new Senate maps didn't change as much as the House maps, but there are differences around the margins of Senate Districts 14 (Fort Collins) and 23 (a sprawling strip from Wellington to the southern Weld County line) that have put many people in a different district.

Senate District 15, which includes the vast majority of Larimer County outside Fort Collins, has gotten much larger geographically and now includes much of rural Boulder County. Prior to the 2021 redistricting, it stopped at the southern Larimer County border.

What about Colorado's congressional districts?

The new map has Larimer County split into three U.S. House of Representatives districts: Fort Collins and everything to the west remains with Boulder County and others in District 2, which will now include Jackson and Routt counties. This year, District 2 voters will be choosing whether to reelect Democratic Rep. Joe Neguse, who is running against four other candidates.

Loveland, Severance, Windsor and Wellington are moving to District 4, which is still covering most of eastern Colorado and goes all the way to the southern border of the state.

Johnstown and Berthoud, which are both partially in Larimer and Weld counties, are in District 8 — a new district that covers the southwestern part of Weld County — along with Greeley and some cities north of Denver, like Thornton and Commerce City.

How do I know what district I’m in now?

If you’re still not sure what district you should be voting in, the state has a helpful tool.

Visit https://coleg.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=5b67525550b347219dbfa72482462f3f to see which Congressional district you live in.

Visit https://coleg.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=41b742a9931a4c87a6e43b01c734c0c9 to see which Colorado House district you live in.

Visit https://coleg.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=e651bcd208074533a11152b4690024bc to see which Colorado Senate district you live in.

Reporter Jacy Marmaduke and editor Rebecca Powell contributed to this report.

Molly Bohannon covers city government for the Coloradoan. Follow her on Twitter @molboha or contact her at mbohannon@coloradoan.com. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: How to know what district you are voting in Colorado election 2022