Don't expect Rep. Lauren Boebert to tone down her incendiary speech just because she nearly lost her first re-election bid.
The first-term Colorado Republican beat Democrat Adam Frisch by only a few hundred votes, at least unofficially, but political experts aren't expecting the right-wing lawmaker to move any closer to the moderate middle, reported the Denver Post.
“It’s hard to imagine what a more-tempered, moderate, careful Lauren Boebert would look like,” said Kristin Kobes Du Mez, a professor of history and gender studies at Calvin University in Michigan. “I have a hard time envisioning what that person would look like publicly and politically.”
Boebert frequently makes news for outrageous and extreme comments about women, Democrats and LGBTQ people, among other targets, which likely contributed to her near-loss in November's election.
IN OTHER NEWS: Neal Katyal throws Justice Clarence Thomas' own words back in his face during Supreme Court hearing
“The shtick wears thin,” said Casey Burgat, a legislative affairs program director at George Washington University. “It gets exhausting for voters, especially when they have to explain that behavior to their friends.”
Boebert's persona has made her a national conservative star, and she may not want to give up the megaphone she's been given and the fundraising advantage that gives her.
“The combination of nearly losing her seat and now being in the majority could cause (Boebert) to rethink her approach,” said Seth Masket, a political scientist at the University of Denver. “On the other hand, it’s not clear that she has a lower gear to shift into.”