Currently, eleven candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America are running for Congress.
In 2025, the election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City gave new momentum to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), an organization founded in 1982 that supports candidates running under the Democratic Party banner. A year later, 11 DSA-backed candidates are running as Democrats in the Nov. 3 U.S. congressional elections.
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Far from signaling the arrival of socialism in the United States, these candidacies have reopened the debate over the Democratic Party’s ideological direction as it struggles to block the policies of President Donald Trump.
“The appeal of the few candidates linked to DSA lies in their commitment to specific policies on health care, taxes, education, and the environment. Ideology in general terms has marginal appeal,” said Steven Smith, a political science professor at Arizona State University.
Richard Bensel, a professor of American politics at Cornell University in New York, argues that strong election results for these candidates would strengthen their influence within the party.
Smith, however, puts the potential victories into perspective. “The vast majority of Democrats who win will not be affiliated with DSA,” the Arizona professor said.
The question, then, is whether candidates from the socialist left could shift the Democratic Party’s direction or whether they will simply remain focused on the country’s most progressive constituencies.
Members of the Democratic Socialists of America are thinking seriously about a national presidential campaign for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2028 that would reach millions of working people and have the potential to transform American politics. https://t.co/JU9881KmBo
— Jacobin (@jacobin) October 28, 2026
Ocasio-Cortez Could Strengthen Her Position as a Presidential Contender
A strong showing by DSA-backed candidates could strengthen their influence within the Democratic Party and improve the prospects of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, one of the party’s most prominent progressive figures, should she consider a presidential bid in 2028.
Acting as something of a political godmother, Ocasio-Cortez has campaigned across the country alongside other socialist candidates. She has also allocated US$1 million from her campaign funds to Abdul El-Sayed, a Senate candidate from Michigan who rejects the socialist label.
Bensel notes that the Puerto Rican-born congresswoman must still broaden her support within the party. “I expect her to continue trying to move closer to the center while demonstrating her loyalty to the faction,” he said.
Bruce Cain, a professor of political science at Stanford University in California, meanwhile, notes that despite being part of the progressive wing, Ocasio-Cortez has focused more on diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.
“She will likely try to refocus her approach to incorporate DSA’s concerns about the cost of living, inequality and employment to a greater extent,” he added, something that would make it easier for her to bring socialists into the Democratic caucus in Washington.
California Governor Gavin Newsom says that the Democratic Socialists of America will become mainstream:
“So I think the— with the DSA, the energy and the desire and demand for bold change, I mean, that’s going to be a mainstream democratic movement.” pic.twitter.com/Qphjl4A0R8
— Anthony Brian Logan (ABL) 🇺🇸 (@ANTHONYBLOGAN) October 27, 2026
Accusations of Being Part of the Radical Left
After these socialist candidates won the Democratic primaries a few months ago, Republicans set about trying to portray Democrats as far-left socialists.
“Republicans have tried to nationalize the electoral contest by falsely linking all Democrats to a handful of candidates associated with DSA,” Smith said.
In most cases, the candidates will run in areas of the country with strong Democratic and progressive leanings, such as New York and California, which could limit electoral tensions.
However, a poll released by CNN in July found that 36% of surveyed Democratic voters who did not identify as democratic socialists felt uncomfortable and annoyed by these candidacies.
Additionally, a poll released Sept. 16 by the Jewish Electorate Institute found that 25% of Jewish Democrats were unwilling to vote for democratic socialists. Fifteen percent of them would not do so even if Democratic control of Congress were at stake.
Although the same poll found that a majority of Jewish Democrats viewed socialists favorably, criticism of these candidates has intensified in recent months over their accusations that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and their calls to end U.S. military aid to the country.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
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