We may be over 18 months from Election Day 2014, but with the permanent campaign now a reality in politics, that’s no reason not to start running ads defining your opponent today.

This morning the NRCC announced they were launching a series of web ads, hitting 6th Congressional District candidate Andrew Romanoff for his ties to former Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The NRCC also has a landing page dedicated to Romanoff, which signals the types of attacks it plans on using to frame the former State House Speaker.

The DCCC ran web ads against Congressman Coffman back in February, but as Romanoff is less known in the district (to which he just moved for the race) there is more room to define him than Coffman at this point in the race.

This race is likely to be hard fought until the bitter end, with the district a virtual toss-up and both candidates raising obscene amounts of money already.

On that front, Coffman just made the National Republican Congressional Committee’s (NRCC) “Patriot Program”, which is designed to protect vulnerable incumbents. Reports KDVR‘s Eli Stokols:

Coffman, R-Aurora, has qualified for the NRCC’s Patriot Program, the group announced Monday morning. 

It’s hardly a surprise to anyone given the competitiveness of the race between Coffman and Democrat Andrew Romanoff, the former statehouse Speaker, who both raised just more than $500,000 in the year’s first fundraising quarter. 

Through a number of member-based communications, fundraising and strategy goals established at the beginning of the cycle, the program helps to ensure that its GOP members are ready to run well-funded and organized campaigns against their Democratic opponents.

Depending on the caliber of candidates who declare for the Governor and US Senate races, the Romanoff vs. Coffman CD6 battle could end up becoming the marquee race in the state. With the fight beginning this early, it’s certain to be a long, rough road to November 2014 for both candidates.