Lauren Boebert

Melat Kiros just won Colorado’s 1st Congressional District. Now what?

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Wake up, Colorado! Colorado’s Beetlejuice may be sent back to the Netherworld waiting room.

As of 12:15 a.m. on Nov. 4, Democrat Eileen Laubacher led the District 4 Congressional race — which covers Eastern Colorado and Douglas County — over incumbent Republican Lauren Boebert by just over 5,000 votes, according to the Colorado Secretary of State.

Boebert leads in the majority of the district’s counties except Douglas, Arapahoe and Larimer, which are some of the most populated in the district. Her campaign remained confident late Tuesday as more votes came in, but Laubacher’s slim lead remained.

The last time the district had a Democratic congressman was in 2008 with Betsy Markey, who only lasted one term.

Despite an endless list of mishaps, debacles and spectacles, Boebert had never lost since first running for the seat in District 3 in 2020. When she defeated incumbent Republican Scott Tipton in the Republican primary six years ago, Boebert became the first person to unseat an incumbent Congress member in the same party in Colorado since 1972.

Boebert barely squeaked out a win against Democrat Adam Frisch in 2022, winning by just over 500 votes, and was heading to a recount when Frisch conceded. She then switched over to the open seat in CD4 in 2024 after longtime Congressman Ken Buck decided to step away. According to the Cook Partisan Voting Index, CD4 recently ranked as the most Republican congressional district in Colorado — but the Cook Political Report recategorized the district from “solid Republican” to “leans Republican” in late October, potentially paving the way for an upset.

Boebert opted out of in-person rallies and town halls in the District during her reelection campaign, holding one virtual town hall on April 28 and appearing in one public debate with Laubacher on Oct. 12. The congresswoman’s standing with President Donald Trump fell in November 2025 when she demanded Trump uphold his promise to release the Epstein Files in full.

Boebert signed a discharge petition for the information and was quickly pulled into a private meeting with Trump and his officials. The president eventually called on social media for anyone willing to run against Boebert in CD4 and called her “weak-minded” and “dumb.”

Laubacher, meanwhile, was hitting the campaign pavement hard in CD4 this year. The former United States Navy Rear Admiral and Democratic supporters spent around $12 million on her campaign, compared to $1.1 million for Boebert, according to finance filings. Laubacher also changed her party affiliation from Republican to unaffiliated in 2024 and then registered as a Democrat in 2025.

“It’s about representing the people of the district, all of the people of the district. And in order to do that, you have to be willing to come out and listen to people and hear the challenges and stories and understand who they are and what they need so that you can do the job,” Laubacher told Colorado Public Radio back in September.

During their lone debate, Laubacher came at Boebert for supporting tariffs and directly increasing the cost of living for her constituents. She also condemned Boebert for supporting the war in Iran.

“If you believe no war is worth it, then you should be voting against this war,” Laubacher said. “No one knows more than I the cost of war.”

But what is the cost of never-ending controversies while you serve in Congress?

We’ll let you know when the votes are tallied.

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Sage Kelley joined Westword as a staff writer in May 2026. He previously worked at the Denver Gazette, covering breaking news and Jefferson County. Sage has received numerous awards from the Society of Professional Journalists and Colorado Press Association for his reporting on arts and public safety. A Delaware native, Sage graduated from Pratt Institute in New York City with a major in creative writing.