(Photo credit: AP Photo/Rebecca Slezak)The Cradle
JUL 2, 2026
Democratic members of Congress are seeing their support for Israel become a liability amid the 2026 midterm election race
Melat Kiros, a Democratic socialist known for her staunch support for the Palestinian cause, defeated longtime incumbent Diana DeGette in the Democratic primary for Colorado’s 1st congressional district on 30 June.
Kiros won the primary against DeGette, who served in Congress for 30 years and enjoyed strong backing from the Israel lobby and Democratic establishment.
Representative DeGette suffered a defeat of almost 10 percentage points to first-time candidate Kiros, despite a major funding advantage following a “deluge” of donations from groups outside Colorado, including pro-Israel lobby groups.
During her three decades on Capitol Hill, DeGette received well over $1.6 million from the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC.
Kiros, a 29-year-old Ethiopian immigrant, is expected to easily defeat her Republican challenger in the November midterm election, as the residents of the 1st congressional district, which includes Denver, are staunchly Democratic.
Her victory follows the success of several pro-Palestine, progressive candidates in Democratic primaries in New York last week.
Kiros was born in Ethiopia and came to the US with her parents as a baby. A lawyer and doctoral student in public affairs, she made her opposition to US support for Israel a cornerstone of her campaign.
Kiros said that she was fired from a New York City law firm in 2023 for her pro-Palestine activism amid Israel’s genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, including her defense of pro-Palestine protesters on university campuses.
A senior House Democrat called the result a “wake-up call” for members of Congress, as support for Israel is increasingly becoming a liability rather than an advantage.
Many democratic voters were angered by former president Joe Biden and former secretary of state Antony Blinken’s fanatical support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza, including through emergency weapons shipments that helped Tel Aviv kill tens of thousands of Palestinian women and children.
“It’s time for the Party to catch up to its own base who are no longer interested in politicians who call themselves progressive but are bankrolled by corporate lobbies and AIPAC while voting to fund genocide & ICE,” said Justice Democrats spokesperson Usamah Andrabi.
Pro-Palestine candidates backed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani unseated Democratic Congressmen Dan Goldman and Adriano Espaillat last week.
Goldman lost his Democratic primary to former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, while Espaillat was defeated by democratic socialist challenger Darializa Avila Chevalier.
Progressives are seeking to defeat as many as half a dozen more Democratic incumbents this cycle.
Following the results in New York and Colorado, the Jerusalem Post observed that “Democrats will inevitably ask themselves whether long-held, pro-Israel positions could make them vulnerable to a primary challenge.”
“Those who care about preserving the bipartisan foundation of the US–Israel relationship cannot simply assume this trend will burn itself out,” the Israeli newspaper added.
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