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Democrat Eileen Laubacher defeats Lauren Boebert in Colorado House race

Summarised from 6 outlets · 8 reports · Updated 14 Nov, 17:20 · Archive

Republican Lauren Boebert lost her re-election bid in Colorado's 4th Congressional District to Democrat Eileen Laubacher by less than 1 per cent.

Lauren Boebert, a three-term Republican congresswoman from Colorado, lost her re-election bid in Colorado's 4th Congressional District to Democrat Eileen Laubacher. The race was called for Laubacher more than a week after election day, with the Associated Press making the call based on final ballot counts showing Laubacher at 48.8 per cent and Boebert at 47.9 per cent of the vote.

The result was a significant upset in a district considered one of Colorado's most conservative seats and a Republican stronghold. Donald Trump won the district by 18 points in 2024, and the race had been expected to be safe for the incumbent. Laubacher's victory came as part of a broader shift in the midterm elections, with Democrats flipping seats in Republican strongholds across multiple states including Texas, Kansas, South Carolina and Mississippi.

Laubacher is a retired two-star Navy rear admiral who served in Afghanistan and later worked on the National Security Council under President Biden. She is based in Highlands Ranch and was only recently registered as a Democrat, having previously been a Republican. In the debate with Boebert, she said the Republican party had become "nearly unrecognizable". She described herself as a common-sense candidate and said her top priorities were keeping costs down, fighting corruption and improving rural healthcare access.

Boebert, 39, was running for her fourth term in Congress overall, having served two terms in Colorado's 3rd Congressional District before moving to the 4th District in 2024. In that 2024 race in the 4th District, she won by 11 percentage points. Boebert questioned whether Laubacher moved to the district specifically to run for Congress, and has herself been questioned for moving to the 4th District after a close call in the 3rd District's previous election.

Both candidates cited concerns about the race's closeness. Boebert's campaign lawyer, Scott Gessler, a former Colorado secretary of state, alleged "unusual voting patterns" in the race and said the campaign was expecting it to head to a recount. Boebert told reporters on the steps of the Capitol that ballots were still being counted, noting that military and overseas ballots were continuing to come in. Laubacher attended orientation for incoming members of Congress at the Capitol following the race being called in her favour.

When asked about her potential loss before it was confirmed, Boebert said there were "so many different variables" that would affect the outcome, citing policy debates over FISA warrants and election integrity. After the loss was confirmed, she posted a video on social media saying "God's got this", referencing her time running her gun-themed restaurant, Shooters Grill, before entering politics. The post drew criticism on social media, with some users accusing her of hypocrisy, noting her previous controversies including her 2023 removal from a Denver theater performance.

Democrat Eileen Laubacher defeats Lauren Boebert in Colorado House race
Image: Independent World

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In this story: Lauren Boebert · Eileen Laubacher · Colorado's 4th Congressional District · Colorado

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log