Shimon Blau
I · U.S. House, CO-1 · Tier 1/2
Tier 1/2, between “Firmly pro-Israel” and “Mainstream pro-Israel”
Denver physician running unaffiliated against Melat Kiros, whose “antisemitic rhetoric” he gives as his reason for entering; he would caucus with Democrats and takes no PAC money, AIPAC’s included. Asked in a Colorado Matters interview published in August 2026 whether he would have joined Colorado’s House Democrats in voting to end military aid to Israel, he answered “I believe in Israel’s right to exist. I believe in the right to protect themselves,” and he rejected the genocide finding, saying “Sometimes I feel like the term gets changed, the definition of the term gets changed specifically so that Israel will fit that bill.” In the September 2026 Denverite voter guide he backed continued aid — Israel requires “aid for defensive purposes” — alongside a two-state solution that he says needs both Netanyahu and Hamas gone.
A 1/2, not a clean 1. His stated positions are reliably pro-Israel — continued aid, Israel’s right to “protect themselves”, a rejection of the genocide finding, and a campaign built on calling a Palestine-solidarity opponent antisemitic — but he is a first-time challenger with no leadership on the issue: no authored legislation, no lobby fundraising (he refuses all PAC money), no hardline brand, and he casts himself as a “pro-Denver candidate” who deflects arms questions. The daylight is thin: Netanyahu criticism and a two-state preference do not count toward the critical end, and his one civilian line — “The death of any civilian, any child is horrifying” — is generic and came while he was rejecting the genocide finding. Open to a flat 2 if that line is read as concern of his own for Palestinian civilians; “aid for defensive purposes” is not a pledge to withhold offensive arms.
Open the full card, with votes, money and every source, on elect26 →
elect26 places 2026 midterm candidates on a six-tier spectrum, from 1 (most pro-Israel) to 6 (most critical of Israel).