Rep. Lauren Boebert’s time in Congress appears to be coming to an end after CNN projected Monday that the outspoken Colorado Republican had lost her reelection bid to Democratic challenger Eileen Laubacher.
The defeat marks a major setback for President Donald Trump’s allies on Capitol Hill, with Boebert becoming one of the most recognizable Republicans to fall during the 2026 midterm elections.
Laubacher, a retired Navy rear admiral, was projected to flip Colorado’s 4th Congressional District after a bitterly contested race that remained undecided for nearly a week.
With approximately 98% of the estimated vote counted, Laubacher led with 48.8%, compared with Boebert’s 47.9%, according to CNN’s election results.
Laubacher had received 185,923 votes, while Boebert trailed with 182,686, a difference of just 3,237 ballots.
Libertarian candidate Douglas Mangeris captured another 12,605 votes, accounting for 3.3% of the total.
The projected loss is particularly striking given Boebert’s decision to leave Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District before the 2024 election and seek office in the more conservative 4th District.
That political gamble initially paid off.
Boebert won the seat by more than 11 percentage points in 2024, securing another term after narrowly surviving her previous reelection campaign.
But two years later, the political landscape shifted dramatically.
Democrats poured resources into competitive congressional races nationwide, capitalizing on voter concerns about the economy and the direction of the country.
Laubacher, who spent more than three decades serving in the Navy, made affordability a central focus of her campaign.
Her military background also gave Democrats a candidate with extensive national security experience to challenge Boebert, who built her political reputation as a vocal supporter of Trump’s America First movement.
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Boebert first entered Congress in 2021 after defeating five-term Republican incumbent Scott Tipton in a stunning 2020 primary upset.
She quickly became a prominent figure in the House Republican conference, drawing national attention for her confrontational approach to politics and outspoken defense of conservative priorities.
Her clashes with Democrats frequently made headlines, including during former President Joe Biden’s 2022 State of the Union address, when she interrupted his speech.
Biden later described her as “one of the leaders of this extreme MAGA movement.”
But Boebert’s willingness to challenge Washington’s political establishment also occasionally put her at odds with Republican leadership.
She clashed with former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and later became a source of frustration for Speaker Mike Johnson.
Her relationship with Trump also experienced tensions despite their longstanding political alliance.
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Earlier this year, Boebert campaigned alongside Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, one of Trump’s most vocal GOP critics, during his primary campaign.
The appearance angered the president, who publicly called Boebert “dumb” and “weak-minded” and threatened to withdraw his endorsement.
Nevertheless, Trump ultimately backed the Colorado Republican in the closing days of the election.
In a Truth Social post, he praised Boebert as a “MAGA Warrior, who has been with us from the very beginning.”
The endorsement was not enough to overcome Laubacher’s narrow advantage.
Boebert had also broken with the White House over the release of government records connected to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
She joined a Democratic-backed effort to force disclosure of the files despite opposition from Trump administration officials and Republican leaders.
At the time, GOP leadership raised concerns that releasing the documents could expose the identities of Epstein’s victims.
The episode illustrated Boebert’s willingness to buck her own party, even when doing so placed her in direct conflict with the president.
Her latest election battle also echoed the close contest she faced in 2022, when Democrat Adam Frisch came within 546 votes of unseating her in Colorado’s 3rd District.
That narrow escape helped prompt her subsequent move to the more Republican-friendly 4th District.
Now, CNN’s projection indicates that the change was not enough to secure another term.
The result represents another congressional pickup for Democrats following last week’s midterm elections, which saw the party make substantial gains across the country.
Laubacher’s projected victory would deny Boebert a fourth term and end a congressional career defined by fierce political battles, loyalty to conservative causes and occasional confrontations with Republican leadership.
Although CNN has called the race for Laubacher, the results remain unofficial, and Boebert has not conceded.
With the Democratic challenger holding a lead of just over 3,200 votes, the contest remains subject to the completion of vote counting and Colorado’s certification process.
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[ H/T Trending Politics ]
