Democratic socialist and primary candidate Melat Kiros held her “Get Big Money OUT of Politics Town Hall” on Thursday where she presented her proposed agenda to potential voters. To expand healthcare access, build public infrastructure, combat big money in politics, and achieve tangible change.

Just after six, the day’s remaining sunlight fell on Colorado’s 1st Congressional District residents as they gathered in The Blossom House. Those in attendance chatted and shared resources provided to them by Melat Kiros for Congress volunteers, Pro-animal Colorado, Communications Workers of America, and the Center for Health Progress.

Healthcare Expansion

Kiros spoke about the support she received after being fired as a law firm associate by her employer Sidley Austin in New York. In November of 2023 she signed onto a letter supporting the rights of ‘Free Palestine’ protests, along with more than 200 other law firms, as reported by reason.com. 

“There’s one message that someone had sent me that said you know,” Kiros recalled their message, “My husband has just lost his job and I’m the only one providing my family healthcare right now and if it wasn’t for that I would’ve spoken out about that issue too.” 

She explained how healthcare, employment and free speech are linked and punishing. “The tying of this basic need, healthcare to our jobs is intentional, right? You are preventing people from feeling like they can speak freely against our government, against foreign governments and hold them accountable because you are going to take away their healthcare as a result of it. So divorcing healthcare from our jobs has to be priority number one.”

She elaborated on her other healthcare priorities saying, “My healthcare platform is Healthcare for All, that includes medicare for all, that includes breaking up big medicine, and that includes canceling all medical debt.” Saying under the crowd’s applause, “All of which has to be separately done.”

Public Infrastructure

On automation and AI’s imminent harm to labor and climate, she spoke to the needs of affected workers and ‘democratizing’ machine learning through legislation to support them. “For me when it comes to automation of any industry, whatsoever what we need to have is a federal requirement, that anybody who loses their job as a result of automation gets pensions.”

In response to a question about Waymo being in Denver she said she’d support banning autonomous vehicles until legislation is enacted that would regulate the sector. Kiros also supports Bernie Sander’s proposal, the AI Data Center Moratorium Act, aka S.4214.

“If we’re talking about political apathy from voters, I do think it’s important to come from the angle of all of us need all of these things.”

She also acknowledged that marginalized people have been excluded from social policies and benefits in the past. Saying in part, “The New Deal was an incredible achievement and accomplishment, but it left a lot of people behind. Particularly black and brown Americans.”

Big Money in Congress

Melat Kiros is one of three democrats facing off for the US house seat and will be the frontrunner if she wins the June 30th primary election, based on Denver’s political data, which favors Democrats.

“I will say, I will never be your boss, you’re always going to be my boss, right. Regardless of whether you work in the federal government. If you are a citizen, I am a public official. A public elected. You are my boss and I am listening to you at every turn of the road.”

What makes her different than a typical ‘establishment’ democrat, such as her primary opponent? She says “It’s that I never have and never will take corporate PAC money.” Her thoughts on influenced incumbents, are that they may not feel influenced by corporate funding but that it impacts decision-making regardless.

“That’s why I’m challenging the Congresswoman [Rep. Diana DeGette], because she takes 64% of her donations from corporate PACs. From big energy, from big oil, from defense contractors, from big pharma. And less than 4% of her donations come from small dollar donors.” Kiros also claimed, “She doesn’t need them to get reelected. She needs the corporations to get reelected.”

The latest quarterly financial disclosure data puts their individual campaign contributions at just over $350,000 each and DeGette receiving $620,500 from PAC contributions. (According to their financial summaries on fec.gov)

The young democrat’s campaign message centers around expanding healthcare coverage through medicare as part of building ‘public infrastructure’, limiting the power of monied interests in government and dismantling monopolized influence.

The democratic primary election ends at 7:00 PM on Tuesday June 30th, mail-in ballots will be sent out domestically 22 days before then, on June 8th, the same day ballot boxes open. Early in-person voting in Denver begins June 15th and on June 22nd, state-wide.

For more on the incumbent campaign visit the degette.com and for the other Democratic primary competitor Wanda James, visit wanda4congress.com.

For more 2026 voting information in Colorado read this article by rmpbs.com.