Boebert Urges Voters to Fill Up Gas Tank 'Before' Casting Midterm Ballot

Republican Congresswoman Lauren Boebert on Saturday made another appeal to voters on gas prices ahead of the midterm elections, despite current data suggesting that prices are generally going down.

With less than two weeks to go until Election Day, Republicans have largely seized on economic factors as their key campaign issues, with the cost of gas being a prime target. Prices surged to historic highs earlier in the year, owing to destabilizing global events like Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Efforts by the Biden administration and Congress have seen prices drop continually since then. However, GOP leaders and candidates have continued to push the issues.

Boebert, who represents Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, took to Twitter on Saturday afternoon with an appeal to voters, asking them to fill up their gas tank before voting in the midterms.

"Before you fill out your ballot, go and fill up your gas tank," the congresswoman wrote. "Remember, Democrats are why you're paying insane prices to fill up your tank."

According to AAA, the current national average for gas prices is around $3.76 a gallon. This is a far cry from the peak average of around $5.10 in mid-June, according to YCharts. In addition to steps taken by the government, AAA also attributed the drop to declining consumer demand. In addition to issues with Russia, gas prices are known to climb in the summer as Americans travel more often.

A few hours before Boebert's tweet, Patrick De Haan, a leading analyst for GasBuddy, shared his own tweet about national gas price trends. He noted that prices are continuing to slide in most parts of the country, aside from New England, where other factors are in play.

"National average 4.4c/gal lower than a week ago to $3.74/gal, the most common price today is $3.29/gal, while the median is $3.57," De Haan wrote. "#GasPrices falling in nearly the entire country, but jumping in the NE due to low supply."

In response, a Twitter user asked if the average might drop below $3 a gallon before Election Day, to which De Haan said, "no."

The national average has not been beneath $3 since around May 2021, when COVID lockdowns began to be lifted and consumer demand for gas increased. Prices had previously plummeted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to that, the national average had hovered beneath $3 since as far back as early 2015, according to the EIA. Economist Paul Krugman, in a Twitter thread laying out why gas prices are generally not impacted by government policy, claimed that the drop at that time was precipitated by the fracking boom.

Newsweek reached out to GasBuddy for comment.