--- title: "Colorado's Primary Tests the Staying Power of the Democratic Left" description: "Coloradans vote Tuesday in a primary that national Democrats are watching closely — a test of whether a younger, further-left insurgency, fresh off knocking out House incumbents in New York, can keep its momentum going in the Mountain West." category: "Politics" category_url: https://herald.la/category/politics author: "Naomi Fields" published: 2026-06-30T10:48:00.000Z updated: 2026-06-30T10:48:00.000Z canonical: https://herald.la/article/colorado-s-primary-tests-the-staying-power-of-the-democratic-left tags: ["Colorado", "primary", "2026 midterms", "progressives", "Democratic Party", "Diana DeGette"] --- # Colorado's Primary Tests the Staying Power of the Democratic Left Coloradans vote Tuesday in a primary that national Democrats are watching closely — a test of whether a younger, further-left insurgency, fresh off knocking out House incumbents in New York, can keep its momentum going in the Mountain West. A reliably blue state has become the newest battleground in the Democratic Party's fight over its own direction. ## The race everyone is watching The marquee contest is in Denver's 1st Congressional District, where Rep. Diana DeGette — in her 15th term after nearly three decades in Congress — faces Melat Kiros, a 29-year-old democratic socialist and former attorney endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, [the Colorado Sun reported](https://coloradosun.com/2026/06/26/melat-kiros-diana-degette-race-colorado/). Kiros signaled the incumbent's vulnerability at the party's March assembly, where she outpolled DeGette among activist delegates. DeGette has leaned on her seniority — including a senior seat on the Energy and Commerce Committee — arguing that experience is what is needed "to combat Trump" and to actually pass progressive priorities. Outside groups have poured several million dollars into the race, with pro-DeGette spending outpacing the challenger's backers. ## More than one establishment test DeGette is not the only veteran under pressure. Sen. John Hickenlooper faces a challenge from state Sen. Julie Gonzales, a self-described "insurgent progressive" who has pressed him on corporate ties and on Israel-Palestine policy; Hickenlooper led in late-spring polling, but [NBC News reported](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/colorados-primaries-present-test-democratic-establishment-rcna351628) his advantage had narrowed sharply since the winter. In the open governor's race, Attorney General Phil Weiser and Sen. Michael Bennet are competing for the nomination, with Weiser running to Bennet's left on economic policy. ## A wider wave — with caveats Colorado follows a national run of progressive primary wins. By the time it voted, [four Democratic House incumbents had already lost primaries this cycle](https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5945924-democratic-house-incumbents-defeated/), The Hill reported — double the total from all of 2018. Two of those losses came in New York, where progressive challengers backed by New York City's mayor defeated sitting members; the other two were in Texas, where Republican-drawn maps forced incumbents together, a reminder not to read every defeat as an ideological wave. The New York results energized progressive organizing, and Kiros's campaign reported a surge of donations and volunteers in the days afterward. ## What's driving it Reporting across outlets points to three overlapping forces: the cost of living, especially housing, which has left younger Democrats feeling squeezed; U.S. policy on Gaza, where the party's primary electorate has moved sharply toward conditioning arms to Israel; and a generational frustration with long-serving incumbents. The insurgency has not been free of controversy — Kiros has drawn criticism, including from Jewish community leaders and in DeGette's advertising, over past remarks on the Israel-Hamas war, which she has defended in the language of U.S. foreign policy. Because Democrats dominate these districts, Tuesday's winners are heavily favored in November, making the primary consequential for the party's direction into the midterms. Results are expected after polls close Tuesday evening; strategists are divided on whether a progressive sweep would energize turnout or complicate the party's path in the swing districts that will decide control of the House. ## Sources - [Colorado primary tests reach, staying power of Democrats' progressive surge](https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/5945924-democratic-house-incumbents-defeated/) - [Melat Kiros may be on the verge of unseating Diana DeGette](https://coloradosun.com/2026/06/26/melat-kiros-diana-degette-race-colorado/) - [Colorado's primaries present the next test for the Democratic establishment](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/colorados-primaries-present-test-democratic-establishment-rcna351628)