The insurgent left just shook New York. Colorado Democrats increasingly think they could be next.
Democrats in the Centennial State are bracing for an anti-establishment earthquake of their own. Tuesday’s primary election will test the left’s momentum beyond the five boroughs — and whether the anti-incumbent fever will topple Sen. Michael Bennet and Rep. Diana DeGette, a pair of longtime fixtures of state Democratic politics.
Bennet allies acknowledge his primary race for governor is far closer than they expected, a startling position for one of the state’s best-known Democrats, while DeGette — a senior Energy and Commerce Committee member — is facing similar anti-Washington headwinds, as internal polling in recent days has set off alarm bells for the 30-year incumbent.
The primaries come after several Democratic incumbents and establishment-backed candidates have already fallen this year, including in New York City last week, where Reps. Adriano Espaillat and Dan Goldman lost to challengers from the left, as well as in Maine, where Gov. Janet Mills was forced from her Senate race by controversial progressive Graham Platner.
