DENVER (AP) — Democrat Adam Frisch said Friday he lost a tight race for the House of Representatives to Republican Lauren Boebert, but his surprisingly strong race showed that many Republicans Party voters are weary of Boebert’s brash style.
The Associated Press declared a close race in Colorado’s sprawling Third Congressional District.AP to await results of possible recount Call the game. With almost all ballots counted, incumbent Boebert leads Frisch by about 0.17 percentage points, or 554 votes out of more than 327,000 ballots counted.
Boebert, one of former President Donald Trump’s staunchest supporters in Congress, took a surprise narrow lead, the latest sign that Trump’s support for the GOP is on the rise in a nationwide battle over the party’s direction. Voters’ influence may be waning.It’s a question some Republican leaders have asked, blaming Trump in part for their dismal midterm results Even as the former president made progress in launching his 2024 presidential campaign.
“America is tired of the circus, tired of the lack of respect for our institutions and our democracy, tired of the lack of civility in our words,” Frisch said. The Democrat added that he would not rule out another bid for the seat in 2024. Prognosticators, pundits and the political establishment have largely dismissed Frisch’s campaign as futile, but a narrow margin is itself a small victory for the Democrats.
“We’re written off by the political class, we’re written off by the donor class, we’re written off by the political media,” Frisch told The Associated Press. “I hope more people don’t call me back nine months from now.”
Frisch said he supported a mandatory recount, but thought it was unrealistic that it would flip enough votes for him to win. He called Bobert to throw in the towel.
In Colorado, a mandatory recount is triggered when the margin between the top two candidates is equal to or less than 0.5% of the leading candidate’s total vote. That margin was around 0.34% on Friday.
Frisch’s comments came after Boebert announced victory late Thursday in a video of her standing in front of the U.S. Capitol on Twitter.
“By January, you can be sure of two things,” Boebert said before thanking her supporters, “and I will be sworn in to serve my second term as your congresswomen and Republicans can finally Turn Pelosi’s House back into the People’s House.”
Following Trump’s example, Boebert’s defiant style stoked anti-establishment anxieties and won him a loyal following on the right. With frequent TV appearances and a near-household name, campaign money has flowed in — she’s raised $6.6 million over the past two years, an astronomical amount for a newcomer to the House of Representatives.
Frisch is campaigning on a largely conservative platform and against what he calls Boebert’s “antics” and “angry entertainment.”
The former city council member in the posh town of Aspen hopes to appeal to disaffected Republicans and create a bipartisan political coalition. He has rarely mentioned himself as a Democrat on the campaign trail and has backed the removal of Democrat Nancy Pelosi as House speaker, saying he wants to lower partisan divides in Washington. It was an indirect poem by Boebert that resonated with voters in a highly rural area that, while conservative, often favored pragmatists.
“We’ve shown the nation that extremist politicians can be defeated, that shouting is not invincible, and shouting won’t solve problems,” Frisch said.