Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado's fourth congressional district is facing a formal House ethics complaint alleging she conducted sexual relationships with three members of her staff and paid one of them $200,000 to keep quiet. The complaint, filed on 17 September by David Wheeler, founder of the American Muckrakers PAC, details at least seven alleged violations of House ethics rules. Boebert has categorically denied all claims, calling them 'utterly false' and 'politically motivated.' The most significant allegation centers on a four-year 'romantic and sexual relationship' with senior female staffer Clarice Navarro Ratzlaff, a former Republican state representative who resigned in 2017. Wheeler alleges Boebert paid Ratzlaff $200,000 when Ratzlaff ended the affair and threatened to file her own ethics complaint. Ratzlaff called the allegations 'entirely false, defamatory, and beyond ridiculous.' Her ex-husband Jace Ratzlaff told Wheeler: 'I assumed this would eventually surface. I'll have no further comment on this topic.' Two additional alleged relationships are named: Raven Finegan, Boebert's district chief of staff who received more than $450,000 in congressional pay through June 2026, and Jeffrey Small, her chief of staff from 2021 to 2025, who received almost $780,000. Ratzlaff received more than $461,000. The complaint further alleges Boebert kept Ratzlaff on payroll as a 'ghost employee' from September 2024 to January 2025 after firing her. Wheeler says the allegations are supported by text messages, bank records, court documents, and recorded conversations. The Guardian has reviewed the complaint but not independently substantiated it. The House code of official conduct prohibits members from engaging in sexual relationships with employees under their supervision. Consent is explicitly not a defense. Boebert's office challenged the complaint's procedural legitimacy, noting that a House member must certify it was filed in good faith — which has not yet happened. 'This was a political smear packaged as an ethics filing,' her spokesperson said. The hypocrisy dimension is unavoidable. Boebert has frequently promoted her Christian values and has been publicly critical of same-sex relationships. In June, she posted on X — without evidence — that Major League Baseball was 'forcing' players to promote an LGBTQ+ agenda. She told Sources Say News: 'I'm not a lesbian or bisexual, and I have never, ever been in any inappropriate relationship.' This complaint arrives within a pattern of personal conduct controversies. In September 2023, Boebert apologized after CCTV footage showed her and a male companion groping each other at a Denver theater. She initially denied vaping at the theater but later conceded when additional footage surfaced. In January 2024, police were called after a disturbance involving Boebert and ex-husband Jayson at a Colorado restaurant. In June 2026, she abruptly ended a Fox News Digital interview when asked about alleged ties to Rep. Thomas Massie, telling the reporter 'Fuck you, first of all.' In August, her 21-year-old son Tyler appeared in court charged with three counts of sexual exploitation of a child. The structural question is whether the ethics process has enough teeth to matter. The complaint names specific dollar amounts, specific staffers, and specific violations — but without a House member certifying the filing, the Ethics Committee has no formal obligation to act. Whether a member steps forward to certify will determine whether this becomes an investigation or remains a news cycle.
