Boebert challenger says he saw indications ‘that maybe Trumpism is starting to go down’

The Democrat challenging Rep. Lauren Boebert (R) in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District says he sees indications that support for former President Trump and his backers is on the decline. 

“I think 40 percent nationally of the Republican Party wants their party back. … I started to see some tea leaves that maybe the Trumpism is starting to go down,” Adam Frisch said in an interview with Semafor published Thursday.

“But for better or worse, the only place in the entire country where there’s any mathematical chance to see one of these extremists defeated is Colorado-3. And I knew that somehow there’s a way to make this an emotional win for the country and send a message of enough of the hate, enough of the yelling and screaming,” Frisch said.

In a tensely close race, Frisch is currently leading Trump-backed Boebert by just 64 votes, according to the latest figures tallied by The New York Times.

Frisch said in the interview that he saw Boebert emerge from the 2020 election with a slim majority of support from her district, suggesting that she could be ousted in the next cycle.

“I realized, oh my goodness, she won 51 percent to 46 percent. And if only 5 percent of the voters switched their vote in 2020, she would have lost. On top of that, she didn’t even win her home county. Those who know her best don’t care for her, and a lot more people know more now than they did in 2020 and not for good reason.”

The Democrat has pitched himself as a moderate and said he won’t associate himself too heavily with top progressive figures in order to keep a foothold with those of his supporters who tend more conservative. 

“I’m not going to attach myself to AOC, Nancy Pelosi, [Arizona Senator Kyrsten] Sinema, or Manchin. I am a Western Slope Democrat, who is going to be more conservative. … I appreciate the more progressive liberal scene, but that’s not going to fly here,” Frisch said.

Frisch speculated in comments to The Hill on Wednesday that Boebert lost ground in part because she was focused on building out her “national brand,” spending time at Mar-a-Lago and on the campaign trail for other pro-Trump conservatives.  

“I am proud that we’ve been able to send a really loud shot across the bow, that that type of entertainment and circus is vulnerable, at least in one place,” Frisch told The Hill.