Democratic socialist Melat Kiros has toppled Representative Diana DeGette in the Democratic primary for Colorado’s 1st District, according to NBC News projections. This outcome represents a significant victory for the party’s insurgent left wing as they continue to challenge entrenched incumbents throughout the current election season. DeGette, 68, has served the Denver-based district for three decades, having first been sworn into office months before the 29-year-old Kiros was even born. Despite DeGette’s support for progressive initiatives such as “Medicare for All” and the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, alongside her work as an impeachment manager during Donald Trump’s 2021 Senate trial following the U.S. Capitol riot, she failed to secure the nomination. DeGette marks the seventh House member to lose a renomination bid this cycle and the third within the last seven days.
Kiros, a lawyer who moved to the U.S. from Ethiopia as an infant, received key endorsements from prominent progressive figures and organizations, including Senator Bernie Sanders, the Democratic Socialists of America, and Justice Democrats. Her campaign gained substantial traction among Denver Democrats this year, and her performance at the party’s convention nearly prevented DeGette from appearing on the ballot. Kiros argued that despite DeGette’s progressive history, she was failing to meet the urgent political demands of the current era, especially with Democrats out of power in Washington. While addressing convention delegates in March, Kiros urged the party to move beyond simply fighting against Trump and toward creating a better future, emphasizing that the party must be pushed by dreamers and organizers.
The campaign also faced debates over international policy. Kiros, who says she was fired from a legal position after criticizing how firms handled protests following Hamas’ 2023 attack on Israel, has called for an unconditional arms embargo on Israel and the cessation of all military funding to the nation. When pressed by KUSA, a Denver NBC affiliate, regarding her characterization of Hamas’ attack as an “inevitable consequence of apartheid,” she declined to label a firebombing of protesters in Boulder, Colorado, as antisemitic. In the final weeks, outside groups supported DeGette by highlighting her liberal record and attacking what they termed Kiros’ “extreme agenda.”
Kiros enters the general election this fall as the heavy favorite in the deep-blue 1st District. Meanwhile, broader anti-Washington sentiment was visible elsewhere in Colorado. State Attorney General Phil Weiser defeated Senator Michael Bennet for the gubernatorial nomination, and Senator John Hickenlooper won his primary but with less than 60% of the vote. In the suburban Denver 8th District, which Trump narrowly won in 2024, 31-year-old state Representative Manny Rutinel won the Democratic primary to face Republican Representative Gabe Evans. In the southwestern part of the state, Republican Representative Jeff Hurd defeated a challenge from former state Representative Ron Hanks, who previously marched with supporters toward the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Hurd had navigated a complex relationship with Trump, who initially endorsed him, rescinded the endorsement after Hurd supported a tariff-blocking resolution, and later re-endorsed him.
