Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) has vehemently denied allegations that she had sexual relationships with three staff members, two of them women. Although I have never been a fan of the Colorado congresswoman, I have to say: I believe her. The reasons will soon become clear.
On Thursday, David B. Wheeler, co-founder of American Muckrakers PAC, filed a sworn complaint with the House Ethics Committee. The next day, Wheeler published it with some redactions.
Responding to a request for comment from Sources Say News, Boebert said: “Well, I’m not a lesbian or bisexual, and I have never, ever been in any inappropriate relationship, nor have I ever been sexually involved with any staff.”
Addressing the extra claims attached to the story alleging a relationship with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and his wife, Ginger, she added, “Creative, I’ll give him that!”
The complaint focuses primarily on Boebert’s relationship with Clarice Navarro Ratzlaff, who served as her district director from 2021 to 2025. It also names Raven Finegan, Boebert’s current district chief of staff, and Jeffrey Small, her former chief of staff.
The complaint states that over four years, Boebert and Navarro Ratzlaff “engaged in a romantic and sexual relationship.” The sexual encounters “occurred during official office hours, after hours, and on weekends; in Colorado and outside Colorado; in Respondent’s district office in Colorado; in a vehicle for which Ms. Navarro Ratzlaff received mileage reimbursements; and in hotel rooms paid for by Respondent’s campaign committee.”
Wheeler’s most explosive claim centers on an alleged $200,000 payment made in March 2025 to secure Navarro Ratzlaff’s silence:
Following the end of her House employment, Ms. Navarro Ratzlaff communicated to Respondent that she intended to file an ethics complaint against Respondent. Thereafter, in or about March 2025, a payment of approximately $200,000 was made to Ms. Navarro Ratzlaff to secure her silence and forestall the threatened complaint. The source of the funds is presently unknown to Complainant.
A further detail about this payment is redacted.
In the complaint, Wheeler details four year-end bonuses paid to Navarro Ratzlaff, ranging from $5,000 to $11,500, along with roughly $12,000 in other disbursements over the same period. Frankly, none of those amounts seem particularly remarkable.
Yet Wheeler leaves the public completely in the dark about who informed him of these relationships or what evidence, if any, substantiates them.
Navarro Ratzlaff strongly denied the allegations in a text statement to the Colorado Times Recorder. She said the allegations were “entirely false, defamatory, and beyond ridiculous.”
In a text message to Wheeler (released by Wheeler), Boebert’s ex-husband, Jayson Boebert, called the claims “propaganda.”
Reporter Juliegrace Brufke warned, “Fabricating a sex scandal about someone is extensively f***ed up and can have real impacts on people’s lives. It’s important to get facts before jumping to conclusions.”
Hot take: Fabricating a sex scandal about someone is extensively fucked up and can have real impacts on people’s lives. It’s important to get facts before jumping to conclusions. https://t.co/i4kxyFQfSw
— Juliegrace Brufke (@juliegraceb) September 19, 2026
Anyone hoping these allegations will end Boebert’s congressional career will likely be disappointed once they learn of Wheeler’s long history of targeting her.
According to The Daily Wire, Wheeler has “pursued Boebert for years.” A quick fact-check confirms this. There is no shortage of stories documenting Wheeler’s years-long campaign to bring Boebert down.
For example, in June 2022, CNN found that the Democratic super PAC had made “multiple false claims” about Boebert “while pushing unproven allegations that the right-wing Colorado congresswoman has had abortions and formerly worked as an escort.”
WRAL reported on this story [Emphasis added.]:
American Muckrakers PAC co-founder David Wheeler acknowledged to CNN that the super PAC had been “sloppy” and had published “inaccuracies” on its anti-Boebert website, though he said it remains confident in the “main points of the story.” His comments came after CNN reporting found that the super PAC had made at least five false statements about Boebert.
Boebert, who represents Colorado’s Fourth Congressional District, is running against Eileen Laubacher, a former Biden National Security Council official. Although polling in the race has been sparse, VoteHub’s forecast currently shows Boebert leading by 2.1% in estimated vote share. Its model gives Boebert a 59.7% probability of winning, compared with 40.3% for Laubacher.
The prediction market Kalshi favors Boebert by an even wider margin, 68% to 32%.
Notably, RealClearPolitics does not include the race on its current list of toss-ups.
Finally, the timing of Wheeler’s complaint could hardly be more convenient: Colorado ballots are scheduled to be mailed next week.
The X user in the post below states it best:
Isn’t it funny how these “bombshell” ethics complaints drop right when ballots are about to go out?
A partisan PAC that has spent years obsessing over Lauren Boebert suddenly conjures up unverified office affair rumors six weeks before midterm voting.
The playbook is predictable, lazy, and completely transparent. Sit back down and let her do her job.
Isn’t it funny how these “bombshell” ethics complaints drop right when ballots are about to go out?
A partisan PAC that has spent years obsessing over Lauren Boebert suddenly conjures up unverified office affair rumors six weeks before midterm voting.
The playbook is… pic.twitter.com/Jzv5eoHB60
— Desiree (@DesireeAmerica4) September 19, 2026
Filing an ethics complaint is not the same as proving its claims. Wheeler has offered no publicly verifiable evidence for the central accusations, Boebert [and others] have issued unequivocal denials, and his organization has a documented history of making false claims about Boebert. Given that record — and the complaint’s arrival days before ballots are mailed — voters would be wise to withhold judgment unless and until credible evidence emerges.
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