Democrat Eileen Laubacher defeated three-term Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert in Colorado’s 4th Congressional District on Friday, in a midterm election that has also ousted several Republican incumbents. According to PBS NewsHour, Laubacher’s win ended Boebert’s time in the seat she had held since moving there in 2024.
NBC News projected that Boebert was defeated by Laubacher. The Associated Press also projected Laubacher would win. According to a post on the r/news forum, which aggregates reporting, with 99% of the expected vote reported Laubacher had 48.8% and Boebert 47.9%. That vote figure was not checked against an AP or official release, and the final certified count and margin are not confirmed in the sources available.
Boebert said on X that she called Laubacher to offer congratulations, according to the same aggregated post. She also told followers to "Stay tuned!" about her future, without giving details.
In remarks reported by PBS NewsHour, Boebert said, "We collectively failed," acknowledging widespread Republican losses. She blamed the Senate for not passing many House-approved GOP bills. NBC News quoted her saying, "There was a lot of money dumped on my head."
Laubacher is a retired Navy rear admiral and Afghanistan war veteran who served on the National Security Council under President Biden, according to NBC News. NBC News cited The Colorado Sun for a brief statement from Laubacher; the full statement was not available to this report.
Boebert moved from the 3rd District to the more Republican 4th District in 2024, after winning the 3rd by 546 votes in 2022. She won the 4th more easily. Earlier, she broke with President Trump over a discharge petition seeking release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, which she signed with three other Republicans. Trump called her "dumb" and "weak-minded" and threatened to rescind his endorsement, though he never did.
Other Republicans have also lost or left Congress. Thomas Massie lost his primary to a Trump-backed challenger, Nancy Mace did not seek reelection, and Marjorie Taylor Greene resigned last January.
A separate dispute involves Rep. Ilhan Omar. Boebert apologized in 2021 after video emerged of her suggesting Omar was mistaken for a terrorist in an elevator both were riding. Omar has said Boebert’s description of the elevator ride never happened, according to NBC News.
The sources do not include a response from Trump or the White House to Boebert’s loss. Boebert has not said what she will do next. Laubacher’s swearing-in and any further statements were not covered in the sources reviewed.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.