Melat Kiros’ primary victory over 15-term incumbent Rep. Diana DeGette in Colorado has sent ripples through the Democratic establishment, highlighting a growing rift over the party's values and signaling an increasing influence of socialist candidates. Kiros, a Democratic socialist, defeated DeGette by a double-digit margin in the June primary.
Doug Friednash, a veteran political strategist in Colorado who has observed the state’s political shift over three decades, expressed surprise at the magnitude of Kiros’ win. He noted that similar victories for far-left candidates have occurred across the country, but witnessing such a significant upset in Denver raises concerns about the trend's potential spread.
"It was one thing watching this happen in New York ... But when it happens in a state like Colorado, which is really the gateway to the West, it tells me that this issue is going to spread and may be a cancer to the Democratic Party if they don't figure out what our values are," Friednash told Fox News Digital. He pointed to the success of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)-backed candidates in state legislative and city council races in Colorado in recent years.
Kiros’ campaign employed a robust ground game, reportedly knocking on over 100,000 doors and operating a phone bank that reached 500,000 people. Her platform focused on issues such as universal healthcare, affordable housing, and utility costs. Friednash suggested that Kiros’ message resonated particularly with younger voters frustrated by the high cost of living and feeling underserved by the Democratic establishment.
Friednash drew a parallel between the rise of the DSA and the emergence of the MAGA movement within the Republican Party, warning that a failure by Democratic leadership to address what he termed the group's extreme policies could alienate voters in swing districts. He suggested that some mainstream Democrats are hesitant to confront the socialists for fear of reprisal, a dynamic he compared to the Republican Party's engagement with the MAGA movement.
Centrist groups like Third Way have also voiced anxiety, with plans to launch a $15 million campaign to counter the DSA movement, which they believe poses a significant threat to the party's electoral prospects in presidential swing states.
Jon Caldara, president of the free-market think tank Independence Institute in Denver, echoed concerns about the ideological shift in Colorado’s Democratic Party, suggesting the state has moved away from its historically pro-business stance. Caldara expressed worry that issues such as affordability, homelessness, and business exodus could worsen, believing that establishment Democrats have lost control of the party.
Caldara attributed the appeal of democratic socialist candidates among younger voters to a lack of historical context regarding the outcomes of socialist policies globally. He cited examples like the Soviet Union and Sweden, suggesting that younger generations have not witnessed the failures of socialism firsthand and are drawn to redistributionist ideas and policies like rent control without fully understanding their potential consequences.
Gene Maine, a Denver resident who emigrated from the Soviet Union in 1981, shared his unease about the direction of Denver politics, drawing parallels between current political discourse and his experiences growing up in the USSR. He recalled being taught that Western societies were evil, only to later realize the utopian narrative was false. Maine noted a shift in local politics from advocating for minimal government to demanding government-provided services, which he finds concerning.
Maine suggested that Kiros’ success stemmed from an organized effort promising