Lauren Boebert wins GOP primary after Colorado district switch, public scandals

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., on Tuesday won her first primary election after switching districts and running in a deeper-red area earlier this year.

Boebert beat a field of five competitors in the GOP race in Colorado’s 4th District. The Republican firebrand currently represents the neighboring 3rd District in Colorado, which encompasses much of the western part of the state.

But Boebert decided to take a chance with the electorate in the eastern half of Colorado last year after Republican Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., confirmed that he would not seek a sixth term to represent the 4th District.

At the time, experts speculated that Boebert swapped areas to avoid an embarrassing defeat. In 2022, she narrowly beat her Democratic rival for the 3rd District seat by just 546 votes. Boebert’s former Democratic challenger, Adam Frisch, is running again this year.

When Boebert announced that she was switching districts, she said in a statement "this is the best way I can continue to fight for Colorado, for the conservative movement, for my kids’ future, and for the future of this great country.”

A member of the Freedom Caucus, Boebert’s win also comes after she faced a series of public scandals that created questions about her political future. In 2023, Boebert was kicked out of a theater for allegedly “vaping, singing, causing a disturbance” with her date at the time.

Boebert’s 18-year-old son was also arrested earlier this year on 20 criminal charges, including conspiracy to commit a felony, first degree criminal trespassing and theft. And her husband, Jayson Boebert was charged with assault among several other charges in January 2024 after police responded to an incident involving the congresswoman.

With her primary win on Tuesday, Boebert is expected to head back to Congress next year after she competes againstDemocrat Trisha Calvarese in the November election. Colorado’s 4th District is heavily Republican, and voters in the area are likely to back the GOP candidate. Buck, for instance, won the area by more than 20 points in the 2022 midterms.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rep. Lauren Boebert wins first primary after switching districts