Victor Marx will take part in the Republican primary debate for Colorado governor at 6 p.m. Tuesday, putting a first-time candidate with a national following on the same stage as Barb Kirkmeyer and Scott Bottoms. The debate is one of the clearest markers in Colorado’s race for governor before primary ballots start going out next week.

Voters will be able to watch the debate live on 9NEWS, or stream it on DenverGazette.com, ColoradoPolitics.com and the free 9NEWS+ app. That matters now because ballots will begin arriving in mailboxes on June 8, and the deadline to return them is 7 p.m. June 30.

The Republican debate is part of a broader series hosted by The Denver Gazette, Colorado Politics and 9NEWS ahead of the state’s primary elections. A Democratic primary debate featuring Michael Bennet and Phil Weiser is scheduled for 6 p.m. June 4, giving both parties a live audience before voters start filling out their ballots.

Marx brings a profile that is unusual for a first-time candidate. The Colorado Springs ministry leader has more than 2 million followers on Facebook, has been linked to the national MAGA movement and wrote a book with a foreword by Charlie Kirk. That gives him a reach few newcomers can match, but it also means Tuesday’s stage will test whether online attention translates into support in a Republican primary.

That is the part voters still do not know. Marx has built a large audience and entered the race with a ready-made national identity, but the debate will be one of the first direct chances to see how he handles opponents who have been in Colorado politics longer and whether he can turn attention into votes before the mail ballot race begins in earnest.

Primary winners from each party will appear on the ballot in the general election on Nov. 3. For Republican voters, Tuesday night is the first live comparison of the field before the race moves to mail ballots and the June 30 return deadline.