Melat Kiros
Kiros in 2025
Personal details
Born 1997 (age 29–30)
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Party Democratic
Other political
affiliations
Democratic Socialists of America[a]
Education
  • Washington College (BA)
  • University of Notre Dame (JD)
  • University of Colorado, Denver
Signature
Website Campaign website

Melat Kiros (born 1997)[1] is an American lawyer, graduate student, and politician.[2] A member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America, she is the Democratic nominee for Colorado's 1st congressional district in 2026, having defeated 15-term incumbent Diana DeGette in the primary.

Kiros supports Medicare for All, abolishing ICE, federal rent control, and a moratorium on data centers.

Early life and education

Kiros was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to a family of Tigrayan origin, and her parents immigrated to the United States when she was an infant.[3][4][5] According to her campaign website, Kiros was born "weeks before" her father was picked in the United States' Diversity Visa Lottery.[6]

Kiros grew up in Aurora, Colorado,[6][7] and attended Eaglecrest High School.[8] She graduated from Washington College in Maryland, and Notre Dame Law School in 2022.[9] After that, Kiros worked in the New York office of Sidley Austin.[9][10] In 2023, she published a post on Medium criticizing law firms, including her own, for opposing pro-Palestine protests and highlighting the "chilling future lawyers' employment prospects for criticism of the Israeli government's actions and its legitimacy".[11][10] Sidley Austin asked Kiros to take the letter down. When she refused, she was fired.[12]

After leaving Sidley Austin, Kiros returned to Colorado, enrolled in a PhD program at the University of Colorado Denver School of Public Affairs, and worked as a barista to help pay off her student loans.[4][13]

Political career

2026 congressional campaign

See also: 2026 Colorado's 1st congressional district election
2026 Democratic primary results
  50–60% Kiros

On July 9, 2025, Kiros announced her candidacy for the United States House of Representatives for Colorado's 1st congressional district, challenging incumbent Diana DeGette, who was first elected to Congress in 1996.[14] During the primary, Kiros was endorsed by Justice Democrats, the Democratic Socialists of America, the Working Families Party, and US Senator Bernie Sanders.[2][15] DeGette was endorsed by the Congressional Progressive Caucus.[16]

The Colorado Sun reported that the Israeli–Palestinian conflict was the largest policy difference between Kiros and DeGette; Kiros supported an embargo on all arms sales to Israel and said Israel should no longer be a Jewish state, calling it an ethnocracy.[2]

The primary campaign saw large amounts of outside spending, primarily supporting DeGette and attacking Kiros.[2] Three Super PACs spent $1.3 million on advertisements attacking Kiros in the campaign's last two months.[17]

Kiros won the primary on June 30.[18] If elected, she will be the first Generation Z woman elected to Congress and the second Generation Z member of Congress, after Maxwell Frost.[18]

Political positions

Democratic socialism

2026 congressional campaign logo

Kiros is a democratic socialist. She supports expanding public social programs in light of market disruption caused by artificial intelligence and automation. Kiros pledged to refuse corporate political action committee (PAC) donations.[19][13]

Climate change

Kiros supports a Green New Deal and argues that transportation policy should emphasize public transport and pedestrian-centered neighborhoods rather than relying mainly on electric vehicles.[19]

Kiros supports a moratorium on data centers until federal labor and environmental regulations are in place, and said data-center companies should generate their own renewable energy.[19]

Healthcare and childcare

Kiros supports Medicare for All, cancellation of medical debt, federal drug-price caps, and breaking up monopolies in the pharmaceutical, health insurance, and health-care provider sectors.[19][20] She supports increased childcare subsidies, capping childcare costs at 10% of family income, and making childcare free for families below a certain income level.[19]

Housing

Kiros supports upzoning and permitting reform, federal rent control, and social housing.[19]

Immigration

Kiros supports hiring more immigration judges, caseworkers, and border-processing staff to make the immigration system faster. She supports abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and releasing people without criminal records from ICE detention.[19]

Inequality and wages

Kiros supports raising the federal minimum wage to match local living costs, with a floor of at least $15 per hour, and has said it may need to be $22 per hour in some cities or districts.[19] She supports closing tax loopholes and higher taxes on the "ultra wealthy".[19]

Foreign policy

Kiros supports a 10% reduction in Pentagon spending, arguing that reducing the military budget would decrease incentives for defense contractors and the military-industrial complex to support war.[19][21] She opposes continued U.S. military aid to Israel, calling Israel's actions in Gaza a genocide, and has called for a full U.S. arms embargo on Israel, including defensive weapons.[19][20][22]

Kiros opposed U.S. military action against Iran, saying there was no security threat and no indication that Iran was close to building nuclear weapons, and said she would support congressional action to reclaim war powers.[19][21]

Notes

  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

  1. ^ Stein, Chris (July 1, 2026). "Democratic socialist Melat Kiros defeats 15-term incumbent in Colorado House primary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved July 2, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d Slevin, Colleen; Paul, Jesse (June 26, 2026). "Melat Kiros may be on the verge of unseating Diana DeGette. Here's how that came to be". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  3. ^ Hurwitz, Sophie. "Gaza is costing Democratic incumbents their seats". Mother Jones. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  4. ^ a b "Meet the Gen Z Candidates Challenging Colorado's Longest-Serving Congressmember". Denver Westword. August 12, 2025. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  5. ^ Prokop, Andrew (July 1, 2026). "Melat Kiros is the first political star truly formed by the 2020s". Vox. Archived from the original on July 1, 2026. Retrieved July 2, 2026.
  6. ^ a b "About". Melat Kiros for Congress. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  7. ^ "Meet Our PhD Students: Melat Kiros". CU Denver Public Affairs. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  8. ^ "Fact Sheet". Melat Kiros for Congress. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  9. ^ a b Schartz, Emma; Salhotra, Pooja (June 29, 2026). "'No One's Coming to Save Us but Us': Gen Z Runs for Office". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  10. ^ a b "Divisions mount over US law firms' response to Israel-Hamas war". Reuters. Archived from the original on June 14, 2024. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  11. ^ Lacy, Akela (December 4, 2025). "She Lost Her Job for Speaking Out About Gaza. Can It Power Her to Congress?". The Intercept. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  12. ^ Wang, Philip (July 1, 2026). "Meet Melat Kiros, the Democratic Socialist Who Won Colorado's Primary". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved July 2, 2026.
  13. ^ a b "Who is Melat Kiros — the Democratic Socialist who unseated a nearly 30-year incumbent representing Denver in Congress?". Yahoo News. July 1, 2026. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  14. ^ Luning, Ernest (July 10, 2025). "Denver Democrat Diana DeGette draws primary challenge, call for 'new generation' from Melat Kiros". Colorado Politics. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  15. ^ Panetta, Grace (June 30, 2026). "A 29-Year-Old Democratic Socialist Takes on Colorado's Most Senior Member of Congress". Talking Points Memo. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  16. ^ "Colorado Democrats brace for their own insurgent earthquake". Politico. June 29, 2026. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  17. ^ Paul, Jesse (June 19, 2026). "Super PACs drop $1.3M in last-minute spree to protect Diana DeGette in Denver's congressional district". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  18. ^ a b Moore, Elena (July 1, 2026). "Democratic socialist Melat Kiros poised to become the first Gen Z woman in Congress". NPR. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Dolven, Taylor (May 29, 2026). "Where Diana DeGette, Melat Kiros and Wanda James stand on the issues in Colorado's 1st Congressional District primary". The Colorado Sun. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  20. ^ a b Prokop, Andrew (June 24, 2026). "The Democratic Tea Party is here. Here's where it might go next". Vox. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  21. ^ a b DeMare ·, Kiara (May 18, 2026). "Melat Kiros says she'll bring change, lower costs in bid for Congressional District 1 seat". Colorado Public Radio. Retrieved July 1, 2026.
  22. ^ "Democratic socialist Melat Kiros defeats incumbent Diana DeGette in Colorado House primary". Reuters. June 30, 2026. Retrieved July 3, 2026.