Lauren Boebert Narrowly Wins Election After Bragging About 'Red Wave'

Republican Representative Lauren Boebert narrowly won her reelection bid over Democrat Adam Frisch after she forecasted a "red wave" for her party in this year's midterms.

On Friday, Frisch called Boebert to concede the race for Colorado's 3rd Congressional District even though the contest had not been called and was likely headed to a recount. Colorado law triggers automatic recounts for any races when the top two candidates come within a 0.5 percent margin.

Boebert was leading with just 551 votes, or 0.16 percent, over Frisch, a former Aspen city councilman and conservative Democrat who has accused Boebert of forcing her constituents to take a backseat to her political ambitions as a rising MAGA star.

"The likelihood of this recount changing more than a handful of votes is very small, very, very small," Frisch said in a Friday press conference. "It'd be disingenuous and unethical for us, or any other group—any other group—to continue to raise false hope and encourage fundraising for a recount."

"I just got off the phone with Representative Boebert. I called her to formally concede this election," he said.

Boebert had declared victory late Thursday, saying while there was likely to be a recount, past recounts in Colorado "have resulted in far fewer votes being adjusted than anything that could affect the current outcome we're seeing tonight in this race."

"When all legal ballots are counted and the race is certified on or before December 6th, Congresswoman Boebert will win her race," a spokesperson for the GOP lawmaker told Newsweek on Friday.

On Election Day, the conservative firebrand appeared to be sure that the GOP would sweep elections across the nation and ride into the next Congress with majorities in both chambers.

"Today is Red Wave Day!" Boebert tweeted on Tuesday. "I love you and am humbled by all your support. I love being your Representative. I love fighting for you and speaking up for our way of life. I am honored to serve you!"

As results began to roll in, the congresswoman even congratulated Florida's Representative-elect Anna Paulina Luna, declaring, "The red wave has begun!" shortly after polls closed on Election Day.

However, as votes were tabulated, it appeared that Boebert was in a tight race.

"I spent 10 months trying to convince donors and journalists and political strategists everywhere that there was a path forward," Frisch told the Associated Press on November 3. "And people started to believe it a little bit a month ago, and people believed that a lot four hours ago."

There has been general GOP disappointment this year as Republicans failed to win as largely as anticipated in the midterms. Although Republicans are still on a path to taking back control of the House, the Senate is back in play now that Democrats have flipped a seat in Pennsylvania while Georgia is headed to a runoff.

Two years ago, Boebert ousted incumbent Republican Representative Scott Tipton in the primaries with 55 percent of the GOP vote. She went on to win the general election with just over 51 percent of the vote—a margin larger than the one she won reelection with this year.