Representative Lauren Boebert, a hard-line Republican, on Friday narrowly lost her bid for re-election in a conservative Colorado district, according to The Associated Press, an outcome that showed just how deeply Democrats encroached into Republican territory this year.
Ms. Boebert, a fiery favorite of the MAGA movement, switched congressional districts a few years ago after her old seat in Colorado grew more competitive. But the change was not enough to keep her from being ousted by Eileen Laubacher, a Democrat and a retired rear admiral in the Navy.
Ms. Laubacher declared victory on Monday, and was leading by more than 3,000 votes when the race was called on Friday. Ms. Boebert, who amplified President Trump’s false claims of a stolen election in 2020, has not yet conceded. Her lawyer suggested last week that Ms. Boebert would request a recount.
Democrats flooded the airwaves in the district with more than $7 million worth of ads, outspending Republicans by more than 23 to 1, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact. Many of the ads fixed on Ms. Boebert’s polarizing nature and past scandals, with one calling her “uniquely unfit.” Another ad contrasted Ms. Laubacher’s profile as a Navy veteran and mother of five with headlines about Ms. Boebert.
“Lauren Boebert flips out over ‘Beetlejuice’ groping footage,” the chyron read in one clip, referring to Ms. Boebert’s ejection from a Denver theater in 2023. Another showed Ms. Boebert cursing at the person filming.
“Like so many of us, Eileen is done with the extremists in both parties,” a narrator said in the ad, which was run by Ms. Laubacher’s campaign. “Maybe the best way to break through the noise is a little less talking and more listening.”
Democrats had viewed Ms. Boebert as vulnerable in the closing stretch of this year’s race, as her once-close alliance with President Trump became a liability among voters who blamed his administration for high gas prices and other affordability concerns.
Ms. Boebert, first elected in 2020, broke with Mr. Trump at times during the past year, particularly over her calls to release files related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. And she drew the president’s anger by campaigning for Representative Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who became a nuisance for Mr. Trump.
After the election, Ms. Boebert declined to blame Mr. Trump for Republicans’ blowout losses, though she said she was “very frustrated with the war.” She told reporters this week that the Trump administration should have gone further to deport immigrants who were in the United States illegally and that Republican lawmakers “could have done a lot more.” Ms. Boebert did not respond to a request for comment.
Ms. Laubacher ran on a centrist platform but hammered Ms. Boebert for her votes against resolutions directing Mr. Trump to end the war in Iran or seek congressional approval. She also centered a promise to protect rural hospitals in the wake of Medicaid cuts.
Ms. Laubacher served in the National Security Council for two years during the Biden administration, and earlier in her career she worked as a Navy intelligence officer and served in the Navy Reserves. She was promoted to the rank of rear admiral in 2018.
“I don’t answer to a political party,” Ms. Laubacher said in a statement declaring victory on Monday. “I answer to the people of the 4th district and I’ll work with anyone and everyone, including President Trump, Republicans, and Democrats to get things done for Colorado.”
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