Rep. Lauren Boebert, the MAGA lightning rod who flipped districts in Colorado to avoid being expelled from the House, won a crowded Republican primary Tuesday in a conservative part of the state, all but ensuring she will serve another two years in Congress.
Boebert, a two-term Republican, defeated multiple challengers in Colorado’s eastern plains, all but guaranteeing that she will prevail over her Democratic rival in November in the solidly red Fourth Congressional District. The KeynoteUSA called her race for her less than half an hour after polls closed, as she was leading by a wide margin.
Boebert, an outspoken right-wing lawmaker, won her seat for the first time in 2020 after defeating an incumbent Republican in a primary. She became famous for her strong pro-gun views; she carried a Glock on her hip and encouraged staff at her now-closed restaurant to openly carry handguns. In Congress, she has become known for her strident MAGA views and has been embroiled in a series of personal imbroglios, including her ejection from a Denver theater in a lewd episode that was caught on camera. closed circuit.
Facing a strong Democratic threat in the sprawling western Colorado district where she was first elected, Boebert decided to move to eastern Colorado for a better chance of staying in the House, and it appears to have worked.
The seat was vacated earlier this year by Ken Buck, a Republican who left Congress before the end of his term and will be temporarily replaced by Greg Lopez, a Republican former mayor of Parker who won a separate special election on Tuesday. Ms. Boebert did not run in the special election, as that would have required her to give up her current seat, narrowing the slim Republican majority.
Former President Donald J. Trump endorsed her, and her national profile helped her raise significantly more money than her five primary opponents, who split the anti-Boebert vote and enabled her victory despite claims that she was cheating by suddenly changing her residence.
Boebert won re-election in her original district in 2022 by just over 500 votes and would have again faced a challenge from Adam Frisch, a Democrat who made the race close two years ago with little outside help. In this round, he was getting strong financial support from Democrats who saw an opportunity to unseat Ms. Boebert.
Now that Boebert is gone, Democrats hope to pick up the seat she now holds in the conservative district, which includes high-end ski resorts as well as energy facilities and working ranches. Democrats pushed a right-wing conservative in a crowded primary there, betting that Frisch would have an easier time defeating a far-right Republican in November.
But the effort failed when Jeff Hurd, a Grand Junction attorney, won the Republican nomination on Tuesday, giving the party establishment its preferred candidate over Frisch.
Keynote USA
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