Boebert Says Trump’s Call for Primary Opponent ‘Can’t Happen’ After She Backs Massie; Colorado Deadlines Block Primary Challenge

Rep. Lauren Boebert said on national television that President Donald Trump's public call for a primary challenger against her simply cannot happen this cycle, citing Colorado's election calendar. The dispute began after Boebert traveled to Kentucky on May 16 to campaign alongside Rep. Thomas Massie, who faced a Trump-backed primary challenger — retired Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein — in the May 19 Republican primary. In a series of Saturday-night Truth Social posts, Trump lashed out at Republicans supporting Massie, branding Boebert "weak-minded" and a "carpetbagger" and openly soliciting an opponent: he asked whether anyone was interested in running against her in Colorado's 4th Congressional District and said that, although he had endorsed her long ago, he would consider it an honor to withdraw that endorsement for "a good and proper alternative." He also escalated his long-running feud with Massie, whom he called disloyal, and criticized Sen. Rand Paul for standing with him. Asked by NewsNation host Chris Cuomo whether she could survive losing Trump's support, Boebert did not attack the president directly but pointed out that the mechanism he was invoking was no longer available: Colorado's candidate filing deadline had already closed on March 18, her June 30 Republican primary would proceed with her unopposed, and the secretary of state's office had already certified the ballots — which had even been mailed to overseas voters.
While a primary challenge now appears blocked, Colorado law does allow for potential write-in campaigns in the November general election, subject to procedural requirements. Colorado Newsline quoted a secretary of state spokesperson, Jack Todd, explaining: "Candidates from any party who were not on the primary ballot and want to run as a write-in candidate in the November general election can file an affidavit of interest with the secretary of state's office no later than July 16, according to secretary spokesperson Jack Todd." That window, however, pertains to the general election and would not revive the primary process that Trump invoked.
Boebert also responded directly to Trump on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, reiterating her political stance and loyalty to her ally. Her post said: "No, I'm not mad or offended. I knew the risks when I agreed to stand by my friend Thomas Massie. I was, and will be, America First, America Always, and MAGA. Onward." The exchange highlights the continuing intra-party tensions within the Republican coalition between Trump-aligned forces and members who have diverged from the former president's preferred endorsements. Boebert had initially tried to thread the needle, posting side-by-side photos of herself with both Massie and Trump and saying she supported both men, before Trump's posts forced the confrontation into the open. The friction had been building for months: she had publicly criticized Trump in December 2025 over his veto of a clean-water infrastructure bill she had championed for southeastern Colorado constituents, and she broke with the White House over the push to release the Epstein files. By some counts she is the second Colorado Republican to lose Trump's endorsement this cycle over perceived disloyalty.
The public back-and-forth underscores the influence Trump continues to exert over Republican nominations and the limits of that influence when state election rules and certification deadlines are already in place. Massie himself went on to lose his primary to Gallrein on May 19, in what was reported to be the most expensive U.S. House primary in history, with Cabinet officials and senior White House aides campaigning against him — a result that demonstrated how potent Trump's intervention can be where the calendar still permits it, and that sharpened the contrast with Boebert's insulated position. Observers have noted a broader pattern this cycle of Trump moving to punish Republicans seen as crossing him, from the ouster of incumbents to interventions in down-ballot races. With Boebert scheduled to face a Democratic opponent head-to-head in the general election, the immediate pathway for a Trump-endorsed challenger to displace her in the primary appears closed, though the possibility of a write-in campaign in November remains a longer-shot option subject to filing deadlines and practical barriers.