Melat Kiros ends Diana DeGette’s nearly 30-year run in Congress with primary upset

Democratic socialist Melat Kiros scored a major political upset Tuesday, defeating longtime Rep. Diana DeGette in Colorado’s 1st Congressional District Democratic primary.

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Kiros’ victory ends the incumbent’s three-decade tenure in Congress. DeGette has represented the Denver-based district since 1997 and has served 15 terms.

Kiros, 29, also defeated University of Colorado Regent Wanda James in the three-way contest, capitalizing on growing calls for generational change in one of Colorado’s safest Democratic districts.

With the district heavily favoring Democrats, Kiros is expected to enter the November general election as the overwhelming favorite.

The 29-year-old attorney and first-time candidate built her campaign around a message that the district needed fresh leadership after nearly 30 years represented by the same member of Congress. Running as a democratic socialist, she called for Medicare for All, a Green New Deal, expanded affordable housing and stronger labor protections. She also made U.S. policy toward Israel a central issue of her campaign, calling for an end to all U.S. military aid to Israel and describing the war in Gaza as “the moral question of our time.”

Her campaign gained momentum in its closing weeks with support from progressive organizations, including Justice Democrats and the Democratic Socialists of America, while attracting thousands of small-dollar donors and volunteers. 

 “They can’t stop us from building this movement,” Kiros told MS NOW on Sunday.

The race became one of Colorado’s most closely watched primaries as progressive groups invested heavily in their effort to defeat one of the state’s longest-serving Congress members. The contest reflected broader ideological divisions within the Democratic Party, where younger, left-wing challengers have increasingly targeted veteran incumbents.