Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) became the latest casualty of the 2026 GOP midterm wipeout after six years in the House.
The controversial lawmaker, who switched to a safer district in 2024, was defeated by Democrat Eileen Laubacher in a race that remained too close to call for days after polls closed last Tuesday. CNN projected Laubacher the winner on Monday.
With an estimated 98% of votes counted, Laubacher led 48.8% to 47.9%, a margin of 3,237 votes, according to CNN. Libertarian Douglas Mangeris took 3.3%.
Laubacher’s lead grew as late ballots came in from counties that favored her, after Boebert’s strongest county, Weld, had finished counting. Boebert’s campaign attorney, Scott Gessler, had said the campaign was investigating “some very unusual voting patterns,” without saying what they were.
Laubacher, 58, is a retired Navy rear admiral who served more than three decades and a former National Security Council official. Her win is a stunning upset in Colorado’s 4th Congressional District, the state’s most Republican. The last time a Democrat won the district was in 2008, when its boundaries included Larimer County and Greeley, Colorado Politics reported.
Boebert, a staunch Donald Trump ally known for her combative style, first won Colorado’s 3rd District in 2020 after unseating a fifth-term Republican incumbent in a primary. She held that seat in 2022 by just 546 votes, then jumped to the more Republican 4th District in 2024 rather than face a rematch.
This time, the move wasn’t enough to save her.
Her relationship with Trump wasn’t always smooth. He called her “dumb” and “weak-minded” this year after she campaigned for Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), one of his fiercest GOP critics, before endorsing her again days before the election, CNN reported.
Her defeat capped a night of devastating losses for Republicans, as Democrats seized control of both the House and Senate and GOP candidates fell in deep-red territory from Texas to Kansas.