Date: June 29th, 2026 8:20 PM
Author: Zero Income No Kids
House Democrats are watching with trepidation as another one of their veteran colleagues tries to fend off a left-wing challenger in the Colorado primaries on Tuesday.
Why it matters: The race will help reveal whether the big anti-establishment victories in New York last week were one-offs or a sign of the new normal for longtime Democratic incumbents.
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) has told colleagues that she thinks she will ultimately prevail over attorney and PhD student Melat Kiros but is taking the challenge seriously, multiple lawmakers told Axios.
"I think it's quite likely DeGette will lose," said one House Democrat who spoke on the condition of anonymity to offer candid analysis on the race.
"Democratic leadership that ignores this," the lawmaker added, "does so at its own peril."
Kiros, a 29-year-old Democratic Socialists of America member backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), was born the same year that DeGette, 68, first took office.
The Notre Dame law graduate made headlines after being fired by her law firm in 2023 for refusing to take down a Medium post defending pro-Palestinian advocacy and criticizing Israel. Last week, Kiros drew criticism for declining to call a firebombing attack at a vigil for Israeli hostages in Boulder last year antisemitic.
She has been backed by left-wing groups including DSA, Track AIPAC, the Colorado Working Families Party, Justice Democrats and the Sunrise Movement.
(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5878429&forum_id=2)#49970010)