Wikipedia

Draft:Melat Kiros

Melat Kiros
Portrait of Melat Kiros at the Cheesman Park Pavilion in Denver, Colorado by Andra Turner
Kiros in 2025
Personal details
BornTemplate:5/23/1997, 29 years old
Ethiopia
Citizenship United States
PartyDemocratic
Other party
Education
Occupation
WebsiteCampaign website

Melat Kiros (born 1997) is an American lawyer and PhD candidate running for elected office in the US House of Representatives election for Colorado's 1st Congressional District (CD-1), which includes the majority of the City and County of Denver.[1]

Early life and education

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Melat Kiros was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Her family relocated to the United States when her father won the United States' Diversity Immigrant Visa (also known as the visa lottery or Green Card lottery). Her family settled in Colorado, where her parents worked multiple jobs to make ends meet.[2]

Kiros completed a double major Political Science and Economics at Washington College. She earned her JD, graduated from University of Notre Dame Law School in 2022.[3] Embarking on her legal career, she started working as a securities regulation attorney at a firm in New York City.[1]

Professional career

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In late 2023, while working as an attorney in New York, Kiros wrote an article defending students' rights to critique Israel and protest the genocide in Gaza.[4] Her law firm asked her to either take down the article or resign from the firm, and when she refused, her employment was terminated.[5][6] Kiros returned to Colorado, enrolled in a doctoral program in the University of Colorado Denver School of Public Affairs, and supported herself by working as a barista.[5]

Political career

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2026 campaign: US House of Representatives, CD-1

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Kiros announced her candidacy for US Congress for Colorado's 1st Congressional District (CD-1) in Colorado in 2025, with early support from the Denver chapter of Democratic Socialists of America.[7] She has pledged to refuse funding from corporate PACs[8], pro-Israel lobbying groups, or defense contractors.[9]

In the 2026 Democratic Caucus and Assembly process, Kiros outperformed the incumbent US Representative, Diana DeGette, who has held the state's most reliably Democratic seat for 30 years and has run unopposed in ten of fourteen primary elections.[3] At the Denver County Democratic Assembly on March 14, Kiros received 63% of the delegate preference vote to DeGette’s 35%, with 2% uncommitted. At the subsequent Colorado State Democratic Assembly, Kiros received just over 67% of the vote, while DeGette received just under 33%, narrowly above the 30% threshold required to qualify for the primary ballot.[10][11]

Both candidates advanced to the June 30, 2026 primary, with Kiros receiving top-line designation. This result was described as the closest call Diana DeGette had faced since she was first elected to Congress in 1996.[10]

Endorsements and political positions

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Kiros identifies as a democratic socialist, and has pledged to reject all Corporate PAC funding.[12]

Her campaign is endorsed by the following organizations and notable people:

  • Denver Democratic Socialists of America[7]
  • Sunrise Movement Denver[13]
  • Justice Democrats[14]
  • Senator Bernie Sanders[15]

Kiros has outlined 4 primary platform positions:

  1. Medicare for All[16]
  2. Housing First: housing is a basic human right[17]
  3. Universal Childcare[17]
  4. Arms Embargo for countries committing genocide[17]

Notes

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  1. ↑ The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are not a registered political party. Instead, they are a political organization for those with democratic socialist ideologies. Kiros is a member of and is endorsed by the Denver DSA chapter.

References

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  1. 1 2 "A young Democrat stunned Rep. Diana DeGette in a party vote. Against the odds, Melat Kiros is gunning for a primary win". The Denver Post. April 9, 2026. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  2. ↑ Grimes, Thelma (June 16, 2026). "1st Congressional District Democratic primary: Meet candidates Diana DeGette, Melat Kiros and Wanda James". Denver Gazette. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Will Colorado's Longest-Serving Congressmember Be Unseated This Year?". Westword. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
  4. ↑ Lacy, Akela (December 4, 2025). "She Lost Her Job for Speaking Out About Gaza. Can It Power Her to Congress?". The Intercept. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Denver Democrat Diana DeGette draws primary challenge, call for 'new generation' from Melat Kiros". Colorado Politics. Retrieved June 1, 2026.
  6. ↑ "Divisions mount over US law firms' response to Israel-Hamas war". Reuters. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  7. 1 2 Prokop, Andrew (June 18, 2026). "Is the progressive insurgency about to win a moderate state?". Vox. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  8. ↑ DeMare ·, Kiara (May 29, 2026). "1st Congressional District: Democrat Melat Kiros". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  9. ↑ "A run for their money: Young candidates rival older incumbents in midterm fundraising". NPR. March 5, 2026. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  10. 1 2 "DeGette challenger Melat Kiros trounces 15-term Democratic incumbent in Denver delegate vote". Colorado Politics. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  11. ↑ Frank, John (March 28, 2026). "U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette avoids upset, makes 1st District ballot". Axios. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Melat Kiros says she'll bring change, lower costs in bid for Congressional District 1 seat". CPR News. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  13. ↑ Washington, Jessica (March 27, 2026). "Sunrise Movement Pushes Anti-War Candidates, Endorsing Melat Kiros in Denver". The Intercept. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Justice Democrats backs a sixth House primary challenger, this time against Rep. Diana DeGette". NBC News. December 4, 2025. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  15. ↑ Luning, Ernest (June 19, 2026). "Bernie Sanders endorses DeGette challenger Melat Kiros in Colorado's 1st CD Democratic primary". Colorado Politics. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  16. ↑ Young, Quentin (June 9, 2026). "Candidate Q&A: Colorado's 1st Congressional District". Colorado Newsline. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
  17. 1 2 3 Dolven, Taylor (May 29, 2026). "Where Diana DeGette, Melat Kiros and Wanda James stand on the issues in Colorado's 1st Congressional District primary - Topics: Childcare Crisis and Free Childcare". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved June 23, 2026.
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