Lauren Boebert’s First Debate Went as Spectacularly Badly as You’d Expect

Representative Lauren Boebert did not receive the warm welcome she was hoping for after switching Colorado districts, with her rivals accusing her of being a “carpetbagger” during the first primary debate.

Boebert, who currently represents the Centennial State’s 3rd district, announced in December that she would run for election in the 4th district in 2024, instead. The decision comes after she was reelected in 2022 by such a narrow margin that the election nearly went to a recount. Her public image has taken a massive battering in recent months, as well.

The far-right congresswoman attempted to defend her decision during the debate Thursday night, saying she made the switch because she wanted a “fresh start” for her family.

“I am here to earn your vote. This is not a coronation,” she said. “The crops may be different in Colorado’s 4th District, but the values are not.”

But her opponents—and potential new constituents—were having none of it. In an informal straw poll, Boebert ranked fifth out of the eight candidates. While on stage, none of her opponents said they would support her if they ended up dropping out.

At one point, state Representative Mike Lynch asked Boebert, “Can you give the definition of ‘carpetbagger’ to me?”

This isn’t the first time Boebert has been labeled an opportunist. When she announced she was switching districts, state Representative Richard Holtorf also slammed Boebert for “carpetbagging.”

“Seat shopping isn’t something the voters look kindly upon,” Holtorf, another of Boebert’s primary opponents, said in a statement. “If you can’t win in your home, you can’t win here.”

Boebert’s victory in the 4th district was never a given. She has been struggling with a public image that casts her as a political extremist, and she received a humiliating dose of national backlash after she and a date were caught on security cameras talking, using their phones, vaping, and groping each other while seeing a performance of Beetlejuice.

But fortunately for her, she’s not alone in having a candidacy marred by controversy. Lynch resigned as state House minority leader earlier this week, after revelations that he was trying to hide a DUI arrest and gun charges from 2022.

Holtorf, who is an anti-abortion politician, recently admitted that he helped a girlfriend pay for an abortion. The procedure helped her “live her best life,” he said.

And another candidate, former state Senator Ted Harvey, launched a “scam PAC” in 2013 that spent 87 percent of the millions it raised on supposed operating expenses. In reality, the organization was set up so its leadership could make massive profits.