Taking her unique brand of public affection to Colorado’s 4th congressional district may prove more challenging than Lauren Boebert thinks.
MAGA congresscritter Lauren Boebert earned harsh criticism for skittering from her imperiled 3rd district to run in a neven more bat-shit conservative the 4th. Boebert has not only seemingly forgotten that there are already a host of well-known candidates in her “new” district, but that there are rules. It appears the congressperson may struggle just to qualify for the June ballot. and her Republican opposition won’t just step out of the way.
Boebert’s first challenge in the 4th District, an eastern Colorado seat held by retiring GOP Rep. Ken Buck, will be to make sure her name even appears on the June 25 primary ballot. Candidates can try to reach the primary in one of two ways: either by winning the support of at least 30% of the delegates at their party’s biennial convention (also known locally as an “assembly”) or by collecting the requisite 1,500 signatures. State law requires that conventions take place “no later than 73 days before the primary,” while the deadline to turn in petitions is March 19.
Campaigns can also opt to try both methods, but doing so still doesn’t offer a guarantee. If a candidate takes less than 10% of the vote at the convention, then their campaign is over no matter how many signatures they turn in. And both of these routes carry risk, something that another member of the state’s GOP delegation almost learned the hard way in back-to-back election cycles.
In 2016, Rep. Doug Lamborn decided not to gather signatures as he sought renomination for the safely red 5th District in Colorado Springs, when he thought he had little to fear from a little-known challenger Calandra Vargas. Delegates, though, unexpectedly favored Vargas by a wide 58-35 margin, a strong showing that almost eliminated Lamborn from contention. The congressman rallied to beat Vargas 68-32 in the primary a few months later, but that experience foreshadowed another tough race in 2018.
The criticism of Boebert and her desperation to stay in Congress is overwhelmingly valid. Her constituents were willing to forgive a hell of a lot, but Boebert pushed them too far. Her move to running in the 4th is despicable.