Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) faces a chance of failing to qualify for the primary ballot, a shocking predicament that could end the 15-term incumbent’s career.
Later tonight, Democrats in Colorado’s 1st District will caucus to nominate candidates for the primary ballot. DeGette, who’s facing a challenge from first-time candidate Melat Kiros, needs to clear 30% to make the ballot.
The delegate pool for this caucus was determined earlier this month. DeGette’s allies insist she will be fine. But March brought a wake-up call. DeGette only narrowly cleared that 30% threshold, with Kiros dominating 63% to 35% in a delegate preference poll at a county assembly in mid-March.
Since DeGette didn’t attempt to gather petition signatures to qualify for the ballot, she needs to qualify via the caucus process. And if all the delegates attend, DeGette can only lose a handful of votes to hit the necessary threshold.
The veteran Democratic isn’t fazed by the process and insists she’ll prevail in the June 30th primary.
“I’ll be on the ballot and I’ll win my primary,” DeGette told us.
DeGette’s team points out that delegates rarely flip in this stage of the primary process. They also note the caucus process reflects the most hardcore Democratic activists and isn’t representative of the larger primary electorate.
DeGette has personally spoken to nearly all of the 81 delegates who indicated support for her at the county assembly, even going door-to-door to talk with some of them, per a person close to her campaign. The DeGette team has also been helping with logistics to ensure all of them are able to attend the virtual vote on Friday.
Kiros’s take. Kiros, a Justice Democrats-backed lawyer, told us she’s been lobbying delegates to vote for her on Friday.
“I’ve been hitting the phone, talking to all of these delegates about what they want to see from their future representatives.
“If by chance, we are able to flip those 10 delegates, then [DeGette] wouldn’t be able to get on the ballot at all. And this would be probably one of the craziest things that have ever happened in Colorado politics.”
DeGette, 68, first won election to her solidly blue Denver-area seat in 1996. DeGette is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and has the support of the CPC PAC and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) for her reelection.
Kiros is a democratic socialist and her strength could be a major warning sign for Democrats nationwide about a serious anti-incumbent fervor brewing. DeGette supporters insist she will make the ballot, but it’s highly unlikely she’ll claim the first spot because Kiros has far more total delegates.
House Democrats we spoke to for the story said they’re concerned that DeGette isn’t taking Kiros’ challenge seriously. But none wanted to go on the record.
“The congresswoman was nowhere to be seen,” Kiros said of the caucus process. “We have two candidates that are asking for their votes. One of them actually put in the work to earn their vote, and the other one did not.”
