A pair of Democratic lawmakers lost their primary bids in Colorado on Tuesday as voters once again rejected so-called “establishment” Democrats who have been in office for several years.
Rep. Diana DeGette, who has served in the House for nearly three decades, was defeated by self-described democratic socialist Melat Kiros, who has never run for office before. Kiros had a resounding victory of roughly 10 percentage points, ousting one of Colorado’s longest-serving incumbents who assumed office before Kiros was even born.
Meanwhile, Sen. Michael Bennet lost his bid to become Colorado’s next governor, losing to state Attorney General Phil Weiser in the primary. Bennet is not up for reelection in the Senate until 2028, so he will remain in office, but it’s a major loss for an incumbent who has represented the state for 17 years.
DeGette’s loss echoes what several other House Democratic incumbents have experienced so far this primary cycle. She is the third House Democrat to lose to a challenger running further to her left.
New York Democratic Reps. Dan Goldman and Adriano Espaillat also lost their primaries just last week against opponents who frame themselves as democratic socialists.
For her ouster of DeGette, Kiros’ message was it’s time for generational change.
Although DeGette is also a progressive, Kiros accused her of being out of step with her constituents and called for younger leadership on Capitol Hill.
Bennet’s loss also reflects a national trend. Several members of Congress in both the House and Senate have launched gubernatorial bids this cycle, with several failing to snag their party’s nomination.
Both Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman in South Carolina failed to qualify for the runoff in the Republican primary. Rep. Dusty Johnson in South Dakota lost his primary, as did Rep. Randy Feenstra in Iowa.
And voters may not be finished yet with cleaning house. There are a handful of other Democratic primaries where the incumbents are strikingly close to their challengers in the polls.
Rep. Greg Stanton is just 1 point ahead of his challenger, Kai Newkirk, for Arizona’s 4th Congressional District. Rep. Shri Thanedar is preparing for a tight primary against state Rep. Donovan McKinney, who has Sen. Bernie Sanders’ endorsement.
There are a handful of other high-profile primaries in California and Florida, pitting incumbents against challengers who either want to see younger representation or a party shift to the left — or both.