Colorado's 3rd Congressional District race between Lauren Boebert and Adam Frisch too close to call
The race for Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, one of the largest districts in the entire country, is still too close to call, but Democratic challenger Adam Frisch's lead has been widening over Republican incumbent Lauren Boebert.
State election officials still have not fully counted all the votes in some of the district's bigger population centers, but as of about 11:15 p.m., Frisch holds 136,696 votes to Boebert's 129,791 - or 51.3% to 48.7%, respectively, with 78% of the vote counted.
Speaking to supporters in Grand Junction, Boebert was very confident that she'd win once all the votes are counted. Officials say there are 10,000 to 15,000 votes that still need to be counted. Those could shift the race, with a difference of about 8,000 votes as of Tuesday night, in her favor.
Mesa County, among other areas in the congressional district, saw a sizeable voter turnout on election day, which can delay the counting of ballots - in contrast to the Denver metro area, which sees a large portion of voters voting by mail or bringing ballots to drop boxes ahead of Election Day.
Boebert went on to make the point that people who vote on Election Day lean much more heavily Republican.
Frisch, her challenger, spoke to CBS News Colorado earlier Tuesday.
"We have some of the best integrity in the elections of anyone around the country, and I'll honor those results, win, lose or draw," he said. "I like where we are but we'll have to see. I'm not going to be surprised either way by the results."
CBS News Colorado Political Specialist Shaun Boyd biggest takeaway? "Colorado is no longer a purple state," she said.
"Going into tonight, there was some question about whether the 2018 and 2020 Democratic wins were an anamoly," she continued. "This election answered that question resoundingly."
The number of unaffiliated voters in Colorado - about 45%, according to state data - is no longer an indication of indecision or centrism, according to Boyd.
"Many of those unaffiliated voters are very left of center," she said. "They aren't just anti-Trump, they're anti-Republican."
This might explain why Boebert's race is so close, Boyd says, when so many experts, supporters of Boebert and even the congresswoman, herself, thought a resounding win was all but guaranteed.
"If you're pro-Trump, you have the backing of your party, but you lose most of the unaffiliated voters, she said. "If you're not pro-Trump, you can win unaffiliated voters, but you lose the Trump wing of your own party. And while it may be relatively small, Republican candidates need every Republican voter to win."
Boyd's conclusion was pointed: "I think this is the last election, for the foreseeable future, where Colorado will be seen as a potential swing state. We're officially blue."
