Rep. Lauren Boebert's (R-CO) tight midterm election victory in Colorado's 3rd District was among a handful of wins for Donald Trump-backed candidates in the 2022 race for Congress.
Boebert's hard stance on topical issues, such as same-sex marriage and gun rights, have earned her favorable headlines from right-leaning media and prominence within the GOP, but fueled anger across the aisle.
While scrutiny of her politics and character are an inevitable part of being in politics, a series of rumors recently shared on social media suggest Boebert's personal wealth deserves examination too, claiming the former bar and grill owner has a fortune worth tens of millions of dollars.
The Claim
A Reddit post, published on December 12, 2022, claims that Lauren Boebert has a "reported personal wealth of $41 million on a congressional salary."
The same claim has been published elsewhere on Reddit and Twitter, receiving tens of thousands of engagements.
The Facts
It's not clear how a figure of $41 million was accounted for. While Boebert's earnings and assets have been reported on, no credible media outlet has claimed the congresswoman is worth this much, nor a figure close to that number.
The claim appears to have come from the website CAknowledge.com which, among other estimates, states that "Boebert owns over 5 real estate properties, 4 Cars, 1 Luxury Yacht: "Lauren Boebert's Assets also includes Cash reserves of over $16 Million. Lauren Boebert also owns an investment portfolio of 10 stocks that is valued at $15 Million."
Newsweek was unable to find any verifiable information that corroborates these claims and no sources are cited by CAknowledge.com, a website that describes itself as "a community of Finance bloggers who are popularly known as 'Investors'! These are bloggers who are living an internet lifestyle or are currently moving in that direction."
Whilst CAknowledge.com states that Boebert earns around $175,000 p/a as a U.S. Representative (the figure is $174,000 according to the Congressional Research Service, a think tank for Congress), none of the remaining claims about her wealth appear to be supported by evidence or financial records.
CAknowledge.com also makes a number of other false or unevidenced statements about politicians and public figures, including that Tucker Carlson is worth more than $400 million and that President Joe Biden owns two luxury yachts.
These are also presented without evidence. Newsweek was unable to find any evidence from credible outlets to corroborate them either.
The claims about Boebert are surprising, particularly as there is a wide range of publicly available information detailing her earnings and assets. As previously mentioned, Boebert, as a U.S. House Representative, earns an annual salary of $174,000.
The congresswoman also ran the Shooters Grill in Rifle, Colorado with her husband, a consultant for an energy firm. Boebert released a statement in July 2022 announcing its closure.
"It is with full hearts, grateful for our staff and those who have patronized our restaurant that we announce that Shooters Grill has close its doors after receiving a notice that our landlord would not be renewing our lease," she said.
"This decision was his to make and was purely a business decision with no political motivation."
Financial disclosures by Boebert from 2020 showed that Shooters had been operating at a loss of $242,347 in 2018.
Accounts also show that her husband Jayson Boebert had assets, tax deference, and capital gains from 2021 worth tens of thousands of dollars. None of these reached anywhere near $41 million, however.
Similar documents showed Jayson Boebert's work as a consultant had earned him $478,386 in 2020 and another $460,601 the previous year.
Newsweek could not find evidence to support the claim that Lauren Boebert lives in a $12 million "luxury house" in Florida. In the financial disclosure report, her mortgage is listed as between $250,000 to $500,000.
Even if we were to take the income her husband earned, the purported value of their home, and other assets, the $41 million figure remains unsubstantiated.
Newsweek has contacted CAknowledge.com and Lauren Boebert for comment.
The Ruling
False.
According to financial disclosure reports and other documentation, Lauren Boebert does not have a net worth of $41 million. The claim appears to come from a website that also makes a number of other bogus claims about the net worth of other politicians and public figures.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
