Lauren Boebert facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lauren Boebert
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Official portrait, 2020
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Colorado |
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| Assumed office January 3, 2025 |
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| Preceded by | Greg Lopez |
| Constituency | 4th district |
| In office January 3, 2021 – January 3, 2025 |
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| Preceded by | Scott Tipton |
| Succeeded by | Jeff Hurd |
| Constituency | 3rd district |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Lauren Opal Roberts
December 19, 1986 Altamonte Springs, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic (2006–2008) Republican (2008–present) |
| Spouse |
Jayson Boebert
(m. 2007; div. 2023) |
| Children | 4 |
| Signature |  |
| Website | |
Lauren Opal Boebert (/ˈboʊbərt/ BOH-bərt; née Roberts; born December 19, 1986) is an American politician and businesswoman. She is a strong supporter of gun rights. Since January 2025, she has served as the U.S. representative for Colorado's 4th congressional district. Before that, she represented Colorado's 3rd congressional district from 2021 to 2025.
From 2013 to 2022, she owned a restaurant called Shooters Grill in Rifle, Colorado. Staff members there were encouraged to openly carry firearms.
As a member of the Republican Party, Boebert is well-known for her views on gun rights. In 2020, she won against the five-term representative Scott Tipton in the primary election. She then won the main election against Democratic candidate Diane Mitsch Bush.
In Congress, Boebert joined conservative groups like the Republican Study Committee and the Freedom Caucus. She also joined the Second Amendment Caucus, which supports gun rights. She was reelected in 2022 by a very small number of votes. In 2024, she was reelected for a third term after deciding to run in Colorado's 4th congressional district.
Boebert's political views are considered very conservative. She supports former president Donald Trump. She also supported Trump's claims that the 2020 election was unfair. She voted against accepting the election results. Boebert has also promoted certain theories that were not widely accepted.
She is against moving to green energy and rules about masks and vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also opposes certain policies related to healthcare, education, and marriage. She believes in an isolationist foreign policy. This means she thinks the U.S. should focus more on its own issues. However, she supports closer ties with Israel for religious reasons. Boebert is a born-again Christian. She has said she believes the church should have more influence in government decisions.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Lauren Boebert was born in Altamonte Springs, Florida, on December 19, 1986. Her mother was 18 at the time. Her father's identity is not publicly known. When she was four, her family moved to Colorado. They later settled in Rifle, Colorado, in 2003.
Boebert left high school during her senior year in 2004. She later earned her GED certificate in 2020. This was a month before her first primary election.
She has stated that her family received government help when she was growing up. She also said she was raised in a Democratic household. Records show her mother was registered as a Republican for many years. Boebert herself registered as a Democrat in 2006. In 2008, she changed her political party to Republican.
Boebert became religious while attending a church in Glenwood Springs. She became a born-again Christian in 2009. She has said she volunteered at a local jail. Records show she volunteered there a few times between 2014 and 2016.
Early Career and Business
After leaving high school, Boebert worked as an assistant manager at a McDonald's in Rifle. She later said this job changed her views on government assistance. After marrying Jayson Boebert in 2007, she worked for a natural gas drilling company. She then became a "pipeliner," helping to build and maintain pipelines.
Restaurant Ownership
In 2013, Boebert and her husband opened Shooters Grill in Rifle. Boebert says she got a concealed carry permit after an incident near her restaurant. She then encouraged her restaurant's servers to openly carry guns.
The Boeberts also owned another restaurant called Smokehouse 1776, which is now closed. In 2015, Boebert opened Putters restaurant, which she sold in 2016. Financial records show that Shooters Grill lost money in 2019 and 2020.
In 2017, many people got sick after eating food from Shooters Grill and Smokehouse 1776 at a county fair. The restaurants did not have the right permits for the temporary location. The health department found that unsafe food handling caused the sickness.
In 2020, Boebert protested orders to close businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. She reopened Shooters Grill for dine-in service in May 2020. This went against state rules. Garfield County told her to stop, but she refused. She then moved tables outside. The county suspended her food license. Later in May, the state allowed restaurants to reopen at 50% capacity. The county then dropped its order against her.
Shooters Grill closed in July 2022. The building's new owner decided not to renew the lease.
U.S. House of Representatives
Elections
2020 Election
Primary Election
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In September 2019, Boebert gained national attention. She spoke out against Beto O'Rourke, a presidential candidate, at a town hall meeting. She disagreed with his ideas about buying back and banning certain rifles. Later that month, she opposed a measure to ban guns in city buildings in Aspen.
Boebert helped organize a rally in December 2019. The rally was against Colorado's "red flag law." This law allows guns to be taken from people considered a threat. She also used language friendly to certain militia groups.
In December 2019, Boebert started her campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives. She challenged the current representative, Scott Tipton, in the Republican primary. During her campaign, she criticized other progressive representatives. She presented herself as a conservative choice.
Boebert criticized Tipton's voting record. She said it did not represent his district well. Even though Donald Trump supported Tipton, Boebert said Tipton did not support Trump enough. She also raised over $150,000 for her campaign.
In a May 2020 interview, Boebert said she was "very familiar with" certain conspiracy theories. She said she hoped they were real because it would mean "America is getting stronger and better." She later said she was not a follower of these theories.
On June 30, Boebert won the Republican nomination. She received 54.6% of the votes. This result surprised many political experts. She was the first primary challenger to defeat a sitting U.S. representative in Colorado in 48 years.
General Election
Boebert then faced Democratic candidate Diane Mitsch Bush. Boebert said Mitsch Bush's platform was about "more government control." She also said Mitsch Bush had a "socialist agenda." Boebert focused on her support for Trump and his policies. She also spoke about reducing government rules and expanding gun rights.
Boebert won the election with 51.27% of the votes. She received strong support in conservative areas. Her campaign succeeded by appealing to ideas of independence and rebellion.
In 2020, Boebert reimbursed herself over $22,000 for mileage costs from her campaign. This amount suggested she drove a very long distance. Ethics experts found this suspicious. Her campaign said it was due to her "aggressive travel schedule." They later reclassified some of the expenses.
Boebert did not report her husband's income in her 2020 filing. She later revealed it in August 2021. Her husband, Jayson, was paid by Terra Energy, a natural gas producer. Boebert oversees the energy industry in her role on a House committee.
2022 Election
Campaign Funds for Personal Expenses
In August 2021, the FEC investigated Boebert. They looked into the use of over $6,000 from her 2022 reelection campaign funds. These funds were used for personal expenses. Boebert's team said these were "billed to the campaign account in error." They said the money had been paid back.
Republican Primary
Boebert sought a second term in 2022. Her main challenger was Don Coram, a state senator. Coram presented himself as more moderate. Boebert tried to show him as corrupt. She also said he was not Republican enough.
Boebert's campaign had a big financial advantage. She had $5 million compared to Coram's $225,000. Donald Trump also supported Boebert. Boebert won the primary with almost 66% of the votes.
General Election
In a debate with Democratic candidate Adam Frisch, Boebert took credit for bills she had voted against. She also suggested more oil and gas development to address climate change. Boebert won against Frisch by a small number of votes. The margin was so close that it led to an automatic recount. The recount confirmed that Boebert won by 546 votes.
2024 Election
Boebert filed to run for reelection on January 13, 2023. After her close win in 2022, she tried to change her public image. She wanted to be seen as a hard-working congresswoman. She blamed her narrow 2022 victory on certain voting practices.
On December 27, 2023, Boebert announced she would run in Colorado's 4th congressional district. This district is considered very safe for Republicans. She said she switched districts because of "Hollywood elites" donating to her opponent in the 3rd district. Some people criticized her for switching to an easier district. Boebert won the race with nearly 53% of the vote.
Time in Office
Observers describe Boebert's views as very conservative. She does not agree with this label.
As of January 29, 2022, Boebert had introduced 17 bills and seven resolutions. None of them passed through committee.
In August 2022, it was reported that Boebert had not properly shared information about her husband's stock sales. This was a violation of a federal law about transparency.
In January 2023, Boebert was one of 20 Republican members who prevented Kevin McCarthy from being elected House Speaker. This happened during the first 14 votes.
In February 2023, Boebert supported a bill to make the "AR-15-style rifle" the National Gun of the United States.
During the 2023 United States debt-ceiling crisis, Boebert was against a bill to raise the debt limit. She said she would vote "nay." She missed the vote and later said it was a "no-show protest." However, video showed her running to the House after the vote had closed.
Boebert has blocked critics on her personal Twitter account. A blocked person sued her, but the case was dismissed.
Efforts to Impeach President Biden
Boebert has tried to impeach President Biden twice. In September 2021, she proposed a resolution to impeach him. She also proposed one to impeach Vice President Kamala Harris. These were related to the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
She made another attempt in June 2023. She filed a resolution to bring impeachment articles against Biden. This was for his immigration and border policies. The House voted to send the matter to committees instead.
Committee Assignments
For the 119th Congress, Boebert is a member of these committees:
- Committee on Natural Resources
- Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations (Vice Chair)
- Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries
- Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
- Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation
- Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Energy Policy, and Regulatory Affairs
- Subcommittee on Federal Law Enforcement
Caucus Memberships
Boebert is a member of these groups in Congress:
- Congressional Blockchain Caucus
- Congressional Western Caucus
- Freedom Caucus
- Republican Study Committee
- Second Amendment Caucus
Political Views
Healthcare and Education
Boebert is against certain healthcare policies. She opposes federal funding for some health organizations. During her 2020 campaign, she wanted to repeal the Affordable Care Act. She also opposed a single-payer healthcare system.
Boebert supports getting rid of the U.S. Department of Education. She wants to remove certain theories from schools. She believes these theories are divisive. Boebert is also against certain types of sex education in schools. In June 2024, she supported a law to display the Ten Commandments in public schools. She said it would bring "morals back in our nation."
Environment and Energy
Boebert supports the energy industry. She believes the market should decide energy sources, not the government. She supports uranium extraction and nuclear power. She calls nuclear power the "cleanest form of energy." In February 2021, she proposed a bill to ban pauses on oil and gas leases on federal lands.
Boebert is against sustainable energy initiatives. She thinks green energy is unreliable. She believes reducing fossil fuel extraction will harm communities. She opposes the Green New Deal. She also opposes the United States being part of the Paris Agreement. She calls it "job-killing."
Boebert believes that managing forests can help with decarbonization. She has introduced a bill to prevent wildfires. This bill would remove trees killed by bark beetles. It would also make it harder to stop forest thinning.
Firearms
Boebert is a strong supporter of gun rights. She opposed Colorado's "red flag law." On January 1, 2021, she asked House leaders to uphold a law. This law allows members of Congress to keep firearms in their offices.
Boebert said she planned to carry a gun on Capitol Hill. She published a video showing her with a handgun. Her spokesman later said she was not carrying a gun during the walk.
On January 5, Boebert refused a bag check at new metal detectors in the Capitol. She did the same on January 6. She called the metal detectors "just another political stunt." Some Democrats proposed banning guns from Capitol grounds.
In February 2023, Boebert spoke against a new rule about certain gun accessories. She said it violated the separation of powers.
Foreign Policy
Boebert was one of 14 House Republicans to vote against a measure condemning the Myanmar coup d'état. She was concerned about a part that urged social media to prevent misinformation.
She voted to repeal the authorization of military force against Iraq. She also voted against a bill to increase special immigrant visas for Afghan allies. In August 2021, after the Afghan government fell, Boebert tweeted about the Taliban. She opposes U.S. involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Boebert supports building a border wall between Mexico and the U.S. She opposes giving legal status to undocumented immigrants. She has introduced bills to support these views. She criticized what she called a "complete invasion at our southern border."
Boebert believes in very close relations between Israel and the United States. She says both nations were "divinely inspired."
Religion and Government
The church is supposed to direct the government. The government is not supposed to direct the church. I’m tired of this separation of church and state junk. It was not in the Constitution, it was in a stinking letter and it means nothing like what they say it does.
respecting an establishment of religion
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
—First Amendment to the United States Constitution
Boebert believes in a strong role for Christian faith in government. In June 2022, she told a church audience that the church should guide the government. She said the separation of church and state is not in the Constitution. Her office said she was not supporting a Christian theocracy. Experts say her statement goes against the Constitution's First Amendment.
In late 2022, Boebert told audiences that "we are in the last of the last days." She said they would help bring about "the second coming of Jesus."
Personal Life
Boebert lived with her husband, Jayson Boebert, in Silt, Colorado. They have four sons and one grandson. Jayson worked in the oil and gas industry. He continued working there after they opened their restaurant.
Jayson registered a company called Boebert Consulting LLC in 2012. He provided drilling services to Terra Energy. In her 2021 filing, Boebert reported her husband's income from Terra Energy.
On May 11, 2023, Boebert filed for divorce from her husband. The divorce was finalized on October 10, 2023.
On April 3, 2024, Boebert was hospitalized for a blood clot in her leg. She had surgery to remove it. She was also diagnosed with May–Thurner syndrome.
Images for kids
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Lauren Boebert's signature
See also
In Spanish: Lauren Boebert para niños
