Rep. Lauren Boebert announces switch from Colorado's 3rd to 4th District ahead of 2024 election
In a move that has surprised observers and supporters, Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert (CO) has declared her plan to switch congressional districts for the upcoming 2024 election, leaving the 3rd District behind and moving to the 4th, as the Associated Press reports.
The lawmaker announced the decision in a video posted to Facebook and expressed optimism about her prospects as she seeks to win the seat that will soon be vacated by retiring Republican Rep. Ken Buck, which is situated in a known conservative stronghold.
Though Boebert is throwing her hat into the ring in what will be a crowded Republican field in the 4th District, pundits suggest that she may be doing so in order to avoid a tough battle in her current jurisdiction, which is expected to be far more competitive, and which she won only by an extremely narrow margin back in 2022.
In her video message, Boebert said, “I am going to do everything in my power to represent the 3rd District well for the remainder of this term as I work to earn the trust of grassroots conservative voters in the 4th District to represent them in 2025.”
The congresswoman also hinted that the change in districts would aid the GOP in holding onto the seat she currently occupies and would counteract the outside influences she believes are influencing the race there.
“I will not allow dark money that is directed at destroying me personally to steal this seat. It's not fair to the 3rd District and the conservatives there who have fought so hard for our victories,” she said.
Pointing fingers at the moneyed interests she believes are responsible for the situation, Boebert added, “The Aspen donors, George Soros and Hollywood actors that are trying to buy this seat, well they can go pound sand.”
Heralding what she referred to as a “fresh start,” Boebert's move comes in the wake of a series of controversies that included a divorce as well as an embarrassing incident in a Denver theater in which she was observed engaged in an overly amorous clinch with a date.
Reactions to Boebert's announcement have been mixed, as The Hill noted, with Colorado Republican Party chair Dave Williamson voicing a degree of skepticism.
During a recent appearance on CNN, Williamson was queried as to whether residents of the 4th District would be accepting of an outsider attempting to represent them in Congress, to which he replied, “From a party perspective, we certainly don't think it was the best move.”
“We felt that she was best suited for Congressional District 3 and that she was in the best position to win reelection and retain that for Republicans,” he added.
Williamson continued, “Time will tell whether or not we're right, but I think she's got a serious challenge on our hands trying to explain to the voters why she thought it was necessary to leave [the 3rd District and have a better chance at keeping her seat in Congress.”
“It's kind of a problematic proposition. But again, it's something for the voters to decide,” he concluded.
Colorado political consultant Dick Wadhams, however, suggested, “This is very good news for Republicans in the 3rd district, because she was destined to probably lose the general election if she got nominated. And that puts Republicans in a much stronger position to hold on to the third district,” but whether that prediction proves prescient is something that remains to be seen.