Progressive momentum hits speed bump as veteran Democrat fends off challenger in Colorado

A moderate Democrat mounting his last campaign staved off a progressive challenger in Colorado, marking a small speed bump in the rapid far-left evolution of the Democratic Party. 

Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., a longtime fixture in Colorado politics, overcame a challenge from state Sen. Julie Gonzales, his progressive challenger, who has argued that Democrats need to be more aggressive in their pushback against President Donald Trump. 

Hickenlooper, who is vying for a second term in the upper chamber, said this would be his final campaign for the Senate. Gonzales hoped to speed up his exit with a campaign that went after the lawmaker’s moderate position and votes in favor of some of Trump’s nominees. 

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“John Hickenlooper has been in office for over 20 years,” Gonzales said in her campaign launch ad. “I know that we’re not fooled by his so-called ‘commonsense approach,’ cause there is no sense in voting for Donald Trump’s nominees.”

Still, Gonzales’ defeat Tuesday night was a stumble for the progressive wave that has swept the Democratic Party during this midterm election cycle, which has seen new blood hungry for change challenging the old guard and party leadership in Washington, D.C. 

Hickenlooper, 74, who served two terms each as Denver’s mayor and Colorado’s governor before launching a failed bid for president, has been a stalwart fixture in the Centennial State, while Gonzales, 43, positioned herself as part of the new wave. 

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Their battle for the Democratic nomination came just a week after a trio of progressive candidates backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani clinched their Democratic nominations. Notably, Mamdani-backed Darializa Avila Chevalier, a community organizer and socialist, toppled five-term incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y.

And the battle between Hickenlooper and Gonzales was not the only intraparty fist fight between a moderate incumbent and progressive in Colorado. 

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Melat Kiros, a socialist, is squaring off against longtime Rep. Diana DeGette in Colorado’s 1st Congressional District. Kiros also sported the endorsement of one of Hickenlooper’s colleagues: Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

Meanwhile, Hickenlooper will now face state Sen. Mark Baisley in November. Baisley, who ran unopposed in the Colorado GOP primary, initially launched a campaign for governor in the race to replace term-limited Gov. Jared Polis but dropped out of the contest to run for the Senate. 

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Fox News Digital did not immediately receive comment from the Hickenlooper and Gonzales campaigns.