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Boebert embracing ‘ballot harvesting’ as way to beat Dems: ‘They’re doing that and they’re winning’

February 11, 2023 | | Print Article

With her eyes fixed on 2024, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) plans on pulling pages from the Democrats’ playbook to get out the vote.

Speaking with conservative podcaster Tim Pool, the outspoken lawmaker said she’s working on a campaign to ensure Colorado doesn’t get any “Bluer” than it is already.


(Video: YouTube)

“I’m not so optimistic,” Pool told Boebert.

“I suppose Republicans could launch a massive ballot-harvesting campaign. And if that’s the case, then I’m not sure standing up and educating people matters as much as just, knock on their door and saying, ‘fill it out,'” he said of the 2024 elections.

“So, you know, in Colorado, you know, we’re trying to get those ballot harvesting campaigns in place. We have to play by their game,” Boebert replied.

“It’s legal in Colorado and we’re not doing it because we’re not for it,” she explained. “But they’re doing that and they’re winning the elections. Colorado is turning bluer and bluer. We just lost our gubernatorial race by 20 points. I mean, this is absurd.”

“My district’s always been very conservative and, you know, won by 546 votes,” she continued. “So we have to start playing by their games. But, you know, I agree with you. I’m very much more pessimistic. And I don’t think that they care about people. I think they care about power and winning and having control. And one of the things that they love the most is controlling people. That’s very obvious.”

The practice of ballot harvesting was widely used during the 2020 elections in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It allows a voter to have someone else return their completed and signed absentee/mail-in ballot for them. What seemed like a sensible option for those who are disabled or without transportation was promptly abused, with political operatives collecting and bundling mountains of ballots and dropping them off. It quickly became a quagmire for election fraud, as verifying the ballots became, according to opponents, next to impossible.

However, the practice is still legal in many states.

According to Ballotpedia.org, as of May 2022, “25 states and D.C. permitted someone chosen by the voter to return mail ballots on their behalf in most cases.”

Only Alabama insists on the ballot being returned by the voter.

After disappointing midterm results in 2022, many Republicans are now willing to put aside their objections to the practice and take the “When in Rome” approach to 2024.

Conservative activist Scott Presler, whose tireless efforts to register Republican voters helped to flip Florida from Purple to decidedly Red, is now focusing his energy on teaching the right how to harvest.

“I’m in a car packed w/ snacks, driving across Pennsylvania to teach Republicans how to legally harvest ballots,” he tweeted on Feb. 5. “Never thought this would be my life, but I’m loving every second.”

On Truth Social, former President Donald Trump responded to a post from conservative analyst Jack Posobiec, who stated, “I don’t know who needs to hear this but Republicans should put ballot drop boxes in the back of churches in every state where it’s legal.”

“BEST IDEA I’VE HEARD IN A LONG TIME,” Trump replied in all caps. “PUT THEM ALL OVER THE PLACE. RNC, EVERY REPUBLICAN, GET TO WORK ON THIS NOW!!!”

“President Donald Trump approves ballot harvesting operations in swing states. Yes!” exclaimed a user on Twitter. “If we can’t change the laws we need to beat them at their own game.”

 

Melissa Fine
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