Democratic Socialists' rise sparks internal party battle over Democrats' future

In a Democratic primary election in Denver, Melat Kiros defeated a congresswoman who had held her seat for several decades. ( ABC News: Bradley McLennan )

Link copied Share Share article Melat Kiros knows she doesn't fit the mould of a typical member of the US Congress.

The Ethiopian-born Democratic Socialist is on track to become the first gen Z woman to enter Congress, hoping to ride a wave of anti-establishment sentiment on the American left.

"Americans right now are reckoning with the fact that things have been broken for quite a while," she told the ABC.

"We've found that the mainstream ideas coming out of both parties have failed."

Kiros, 29, is vying for a safe Democratic seat in Denver, Colorado, after winning a primary election to bump the incumbent of nearly three decades from the Democrats' ticket.