Lauren Boebert rose to prominence as a “Maga” phenomenon during her first term in Congress.
The Trump-supporting Republican was expected to easily win re-election in conservative western Colorado. Instead, as the votes are tallied, she will face a formidable challenge from a centrist Democrat.
Boebert confronted Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke in Aurora, Colorado, in 2019, after he had made gun control a central campaign issue. It was the day he reiterated his call to outlaw semi-automatic weapons.
Three months later, Boebert announced her bid to represent Colorado’s third congressional district in Congress. Much like her run-in with O’Rourke, she arrived in Congress in January 2021 ready for a fight.
In one of her first days on the job, she voted to overturn the election results.
Keeping up her advocacy for gun rights, she vowed to bring her handgun to the Capitol and drew attention for a family holiday card picturing her four young sons wielding rifles.
Prominent state Republicans, including state Senator Don Coram, who ran against Boebert in the primary, called her an “embarrassment” and endorsed her opponent, Democrat Adam Frisch.