For the second quarter in a row, Democratic challenger Adam Frisch raised appreciably more money than did Rep. Lauren Boebert, a Republican firebrand who delights in provoking political enemies, in Colorado’s closely watched 3rd Congressional District contest.
Frisch, a former Aspen city councilman, brought in over $2.6 million in the period April 1 to June 30 versus Boebert’s $818,000 take during the same three months. He also outpaced the incumbent by nearly $1 million in fundraising during the first three months of the year.
“Boebert continues to vote against the interests of her constituents while devoting her time to ‘angertainment’ antics that do nothing to help (the district),” Frisch said in a statement after the numbers were posted. “We can do better than Boebert, and thanks to our generous supporters, we will defeat her in 2024.”
Boebert’s campaign manager, Drew Sexton, told The Denver Post the race “will be won on the strength of the congresswoman’s legislative wins and her ability to get results for the people of the 3rd District.”
“Aspen Adam and his national Democrat cronies will soon learn they cannot buy this seat,” he said. “Rural Coloradans know Aspen Adam’s liberal policies are bad for the district and bad for the country as a whole.”
With a nearly $2.5 million war chest, Frisch has about a million more dollars of cash on hand than the congresswoman, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission.
Frisch’s campaign said it raised its second-quarter total from 57,311 unique donors, with an average contribution of $32.44. The campaign received $5,550 from political action committees and it spent a total of $1.4 million during the quarter.
Boebert’s campaign received $50,580 from PACs and spent nearly $405,000 during the quarter, according to FEC data.
The buildup to the Nov. 5, 2024 election in Colorado’s sprawling, wrap-around 3rd Congressional District, which stretches from the northwest corner of the state to the tiny town of Kim near the Kansas line, is getting much attention in the wake of last year’s close contest between the same two candidates.
Boebert beat Frisch by just 546 votes, a margin so thin it required a recount that wasn’t settled until a month after the election. It took until just February for Frisch to announce he would vie to unseat Boebert in the 2024 election.
Boebert won her first election for the seat in 2020 by a comfortable margin over Democrat Diane Mitsch Bush.
In her relatively short time in Washington, Boebert has built a national profile with a combative style embracing everything from gun ownership to apocalyptic religious rhetoric. And while constituents in her right-leaning district praise the congresswoman for defending their rights, some cringe at her provocations.
She took center stage earlier this year when she joined a small contingent of hard-right Republican House members who stymied Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s attempts to become speaker through 15 rounds of balloting over four days — until finally relenting after extracting concessions from the California congressman.
“We changed the way bills will be passed,” Boebert said in a release shortly after the floor vote. “We changed the way the government will be funded. We changed the ways committees will be formed. We secured votes on term limits, the fair tax, the Texas Border Plan, and so much more.”
Former Colorado Republican Party head Dick Wadhams told NBC News over the weekend that many in his party are “bewildered” by Boebert’s continued incendiary tactics, like her attempt last month to push forward articles of impeachment against President Biden over his handling of the U.S.-Mexico border situation.
“She has not changed her operating style, either substantively or just generally,” Wadhams told the network.
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