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It was one of the biggest shocks of the 2022 midterms. When the so-called “red tide” receded and it became clear that Republicans would not sweep states and congressional seats, an unlikely political upheaval was unfolding in western Colorado. As election night unfolded, Rep. Lauren Boebert, the flamethrower Maga representing Colorado’s 3rd District, suddenly found herself in the political battle of her life. Now heading into the post-Election Day weekend, Ms Bobert’s race remains undecided – an unthinkable outcome for the conservative core expected to be re-elected. If Ms. Bobert eventually drops out, Democrats may have a husband-and-wife political duo in Colorado to thank for turning the seat blue. Bri Buentello’s excitement was evident as she spoke to The Independent on Thursday about the narrow margin between Ms Boebert and her Democratic challenger Adam Frisch. The former state legislator from Pueblo County, Colorado, described how labor unions and the work of local elected officials, including her husband, state Sen. Nick Hinrichsen, contributed to the close race. “That’s why Pueblo County stayed blue in what was expected to be a Republican wave year, and since then Republican big money has flooded into the district ostensibly trying to buy our votes,” he told the Independent. “Results matter. We are a blue collar town, a hard working town. And people can tell the difference between work horses and show horses very quickly,” Nick Hinrichsen told The Independent. “There’s an expectation that you’re going to produce results very quickly and I think we’re dealing with a lot of people. We are still dealing with the crisis with the war in Ukraine. Some of the supply chain problems and inflation related to it. People want results more than anything else.” Bri Buentello and Nick Hinrichsen (Bri Buentello) Despite their differences, the pair were part of a coalition of Democratic leaders and activists who turned up the heat on the Republican congresswoman. However, the match is yet to be announced. And since Election Day, Ms. Boebert has taken a small lead. As of Friday, Ms. Boebert had a 1,122 lead in the 3rd District. But if Ms. Boebert ends up leaving Washington, Pueblo County will be a major factor. As of Friday, 53.2 percent of the county voted in favor of her Democratic challenger, Adam Fries. Ms. Boebert became known as the owner of Shooter’s Grill in Rifle, where waitresses carried pistols. In 2020, he beat Rep. Scott Tipton in the Republican primary before securing the seat in the general election. Since then, she has made a name for herself as a right-wing bomb-thrower who has received national media attention and conservative accolades. Mr. Hinrichsen said Ms. Boebert’s actions during the Jan. 6 riot angered many people in her district, given the area’s large community of military veterans. During the January 6 riot, Ms Bobert tweeted: “Speaker removed from chambers.” “We hold our democratic republican form of governments as sacred,” he said. “I think after Jan. 6, there was something real, you know there was an energy behind organizing locally and making change.” Ms. Bobert continued to court controversy when she made a joke about Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who is Muslim and wears a head covering, possibly blowing up the Capitol. Ms. Bobert later apologized, but not after receiving swift condemnation from Ms. Omar and many other Democrats. Perhaps most notably, Ms. Bobert also interrupted President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address when he discussed health complications suffered by burn veterans and how Beau’s son, who served in the military, may have died from cancer because of them. (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) “If Bobert had run as a standard-issue Republican,” Laura Chapin, a Colorado-based Democratic strategist, told The Independent, “it wouldn’t have been very close. He decided he wanted to be a celebrity. He wanted to be a celebrity rather than really work with the region.” Plans have been underway to unseat Ms. Boebert since she first won election. “People are, they’re naturally skeptical, and rightly so, of people who overpromise and underpromise,” Mr Hinrichsen said. “And when you’re only talking to them through a TV screen or you’re only going to events that your supporters can access and you’re putting on an elaborate show, people become very skeptical, very quickly.” Leaders in the district, specifically in Pueblo, have benefited from not letting infighting get in the way of trying to defeat Ms. Boebert. In the Democratic primary, Mr. Frisch faced Sol Sandoval, a respected community activist. “Adam hired her right away as part of her campaign staff, and Saul said, OK we have to be a team,” Mr. Hinrichsen said. “Sol can all be in Colorado aunty. When he says that Adam is watching over you, you know to trust.” But misperceptions meant national Democrats were left out of the race. “Everybody stayed out because everybody thought it was a Republican seat,” Ms. Chapin said. “In a seat where Republicans just figured they would come out and they didn’t, that was to Fries’ advantage.” Incumbent U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., with her husband, Jayson Boebert, wearing a black hat, chat with supporters during an election night party, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Grand Junction, Colo. (Christopher Tomlinson/The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel via AP) Leaders on the ground in Pueblo County agreed that national Democrats had wiped out the race. “No national was touching this race. Everyone counted Adam out early on and I can see why,” Tisha Mauro, who won her race for the state legislature, told the Independent. “They had not met him or spoken to him.” Ms Mauro said Mr Frisch might have benefited from outside help from national groups. “It’s been very little on screen and we’re three days after the election is over and it’s going hard,” he said. “I think whatever he wins or loses, he’s a winner, but I think for sure, with a little bit of help towards the end from the national team, he can make a difference. But Mr. Hinrichsen, the state senator and Ms. Buentello’s husband, said that if there is national help, it should follow the example of local leadership. “I think help is always welcome. But one of the things we learned in my campaign, and I think in the Frisch campaign, is that national groups and national leaders have to follow local leaders. Not the other way around,” he said. “If Washington came and said we have one person and we will do everything. But if the community rallies around our face and Washington stands behind the community. That’s a different story.”
