Melat Kiros

Melat Kiros is the Democratic nominee for Colorado's 1st District, a 29-year-old former attorney and graduate student who immigrated from Ethiopia as a child. A first-time candidate, she defeated 15-term incumbent Rep. Diana DeGette in the June 30, 2026 Democratic primary. She identifies as a democratic socialist and describes her priorities as health care, housing, and campaign-finance and anti-corruption reform.[1][2][3]

Kiros immigrated to Denver from Tigray, Ethiopia, with her family in 1998, according to her Ballotpedia survey; Reuters reports she moved to the U.S. as a baby.[4][1] She describes herself as the daughter of Ethiopian immigrants and the first lawyer in her family.[2] She earned bachelor's degrees in Political Science and Economics from Washington College in 2018 and a law degree from the University of Notre Dame in 2022.[3][4]

Kiros worked as a lawyer; Reuters reports she was fired from her job after refusing to remove a post criticizing law firms' stance on Israel and Palestine, and she says she was fired from the firm Sidley Austin for defending students' right to protest the war in Gaza.[1][2] In her 2026 Colorado Politics questionnaire she describes herself as a renter with student debt who was, until recently, a tipped-wage barista at Whittier Cafe, and Colorado Politics describes her as a graduate student.[2][4]

Kiros entered the race as a first-time candidate and won the June 30, 2026 Democratic primary over Rep. Diana DeGette, who had held the seat since 1997, and University of Colorado Regent Wanda James.[1][5][3] Her Ballotpedia survey and campaign materials say she is running to reduce the influence of money in politics, and she says she does not accept corporate PAC money.[4][2]

Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21.