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Rep. Lauren Boebert, a far-right Republican from Colorado, was locked successful a contention that was excessively adjacent to telephone and wrong the threshold for automatic recount, the Associated Press projected Thursday, leaving the result of a surprsingly competitory predetermination successful a blimpish legislature territory successful doubt.
With astir each votes counted, Boebert led Democrat Adam Frisch by 0.16 percent points, the AP reported. Under state law, a mandatory recount indispensable beryllium completed nary aboriginal than 35 days aft the election, which is Dec. 13.
Boebert’s pb was 551 votes retired of astir 327,000 votes counted, the AP reported. The AP said it volition await the results of a imaginable recount to telephone the race.
The contention successful Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District — a wide swath of the state’s westbound — was a showdown betwixt Boebert, a gun-toting Republican from the working-class municipality of Rifle connected the banks of the Colorado River, and Frisch, a blimpish Democrat from the ritzy skis municipality of Aspen.
Former president Donald Trump won the territory by astir 8 percent points successful 2020, helping pave what had been thought to beryllium a wide way to triumph for Boebert successful the mostly agrarian district.
But the contention ended up person than galore had anticipated. Frisch, a erstwhile metropolis assembly subordinate successful Aspen, had framed his run arsenic a reprieve from the commotion around Boebert, describing himself arsenic a “candidate to decision Lauren Boebert.”
“Lauren Boebert is an anti-American, anti-Colorado amusement pony who can’t archer close from wrong,” Frisch said connected his run website. “I’ve spent my vocation arsenic a palmy businessman. Now I’m moving for Congress to chopped ostentation and make section economical maturation and jobs. I’ll enactment Colorado First and support America Strong.”
Since her predetermination successful 2020, Boebert has made nationalist headlines for her remarks connected everything from weapon rights to pandemic restrictions to baseless claims astir Democrats. She besides came nether scrutiny for utilizing run funds to wage for her rent and inferior bills, and for receiving an eyebrow-raising $22,259 successful mileage reimbursements from her campaign.
Last year, a radical of Democratic lawmakers called for Boebert to beryllium stripped of her committee assignments aft she made an Islamophobic remark astir Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.).
“You know, we’re leaving the Capitol and we’re going backmost to my bureau and we get successful an elevator and I spot a Capitol Police serviceman moving to the elevator,” Boebert told the assemblage astatine an lawsuit successful her territory past November. “I spot fret each implicit his face, and he’s reaching, and the door’s shutting, similar I can’t unfastened it, similar what’s happening. I look to my left, and determination she is. Ilhan Omar. And I said, ‘Well, she doesn’t person a backpack, we should beryllium fine.’ ”
Boebert aboriginal apologized “to anyone successful the Muslim assemblage I offended” but declined to publically apologize to Omar, alternatively doubling down connected her Islamophobic attacks.
In March, Boebert heckled President Biden during his State of the Union address, arsenic helium mentioned the dangers U.S. troops face, among them cancer, the illness that his lad Beau died of successful 2015.
“When they came home, galore of the world’s fittest and champion trained warriors were ne'er the same. Headaches. Numbness. Dizziness,” Biden said. “A crab that would enactment them successful a flag-draped coffin. I know. One of those soldiers was my son, Major Beau Biden.”
“American warriors successful flag-draped coffins,” the president added.
“Thirteen of them!” Boebert yelled out, referring to the U.S. soldiers who were killed successful the American withdrawal from Afghanistan. She was booed and shushed by others. One Democrat yelled: “Kick her out!”
Amy Gardner and Mariana Alfaro contributed to this report.
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