3 groups offer competing visions for Democrats. Last but not least: Zohran Mamdani and DSA

 Zohran Mamdani is the 33-year-old DSA member and Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, favored to win November’s general election.  Mamdani is widely seen as a “generational” political talent. There aren’t even words to describe how beloved he is in New York right now.  Mamdani as Mayor could leverage a real shift to the left in American politics.

Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) believes that working people should run both the economy and society democratically to meet human needs, not to make profits for a few. 

DSA is not a political party, but has a strong and growing electoral program that supports their political objectives. They have about 250 elected officials nationwide, from city councils to Congress, and chapters in all 50 states. Importantly, they also prioritize political education.

DSA is not competing to lead the Democratic Party in the same way as Abundance or New Dems are.  But it is arguably the most promising venue for progressive politics in the country today. And it is looking to the future. This past summer, DSA voted to field a Presidential candidate in 2028. 

Who does Zohran and DSA appeal to, and what’s good about them?

Zohran built a broad coalition across NYC, including young people, immigrant communities, and all New Yorkers who are struggling to keep their heads above water in America’s biggest and most expensive city.  His main message of “A city you can afford” couldn’t resonate more.

Socialism’s appeal has edged up since 2010 among the general population, now standing at 39%, according to a recent Gallup poll.  Capitalism’s appeal has sunk from 61 to 54% in that time.

According to Gallup, Democrats view socialism more positively than capitalism 66% to 42%.

Young people are driving DSA’s growth.  According to Pew Research, 44% of 18-29 and 40% of 30-49 year olds support socialism.  Gen Z knows little or nothing about the Cold War or the battle between communism and capitalism. They just know that today’s economy sure isn’t working for them, and they’re ready for something different. 

DSA is laying the groundwork now for much bigger things. A story in In These Times described how their 501c3 arm, the DSA Fund, “aims to create a lasting network of socialist policymakers who can share strategies, collaborate across jurisdictions, and push forward transformative legislation.” It’s almost like they've heard of ALEC!  

What’s wrong with Zohran and DSA?

DSA, like New Dems, is doing a lot of things right.  They’ve steadily gained power by riding the wave of interest in socialism, organizing from the bottom up and growing their ability to win elections across the country.  Can Zohran and DSA lead Democrats back into power?  Are they the progressive group that can grab the reins of the Democratic Party away from the moderates and status quo leadership?  

I think it’s possible.  Zohran’s campaign has shown what national data also shows: there IS a lot of support among Democrats and others for a leftward turn.  Trump has radicalized at least some of his opponents, and the coming economic disasters will radicalize more.  Gallup notes that “Democrats’ more positive views of socialism occur at a time when many high-profile Democratic officials [Bernie, AOC, and Zohran] have identified themselves as Democratic socialists and advocated policies calling for a significantly expanded government role in economic matters.”  

In spite of this, it’s also possible that the socialists or even the larger group of progressives cannot pry the reins of the party from establishment Democrats. The big money and the ossified power structure could prove immovable, even if status quo Democrats keep losing.

Maybe the best new direction comes partly from a collab: DSA, CPC, and New Dems

To maximize their impact, DSA and the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) should pursue a short-term strategy of working together to win elections and build power as Democrats. That could support a long-term strategy of building a progressive party and changing the game to a multi-party system.

When you’re organizing people, naming what you’re “for” is super important. Naming a villain is super important too.  DSA, CPC AND New Dems could put together an appealing story based on what they agree on.  They could talk about “small business” and “big business,”  and leave the socialism to the socialists.

The Gallup poll noted that Americans are overwhelmingly positive toward small business (95%), as they have consistently been. They are far more negative toward big business, with 37% positive and 62% negative.  The positive rating for big business has fallen nearly 60% since 2012.

Promising signs of vision – and collaboration among progressives

Rep. Greg Casar, the recently-named head of the CPC, knows what kind of program the Democrats need.  He says: “In a moment of massive cynicism in our democratic system, we have got to do things that will make a BIG difference [my emphasis].”

A recent profile in the American Prospect covered some of Casar's current agenda.  As a former labor organizer, he focuses on what brings people together instead of what drives them apart, and prioritizes winning tangible gains over winning an argument. He appears to be working with elements of both New Dems and DSA on his plans.

While the CPC has typically focused on strictly internal policy development and political strategy, Casar has tried to get frontliners and swing-district members (often more moderate) on board with his anti-oligarchy message, honed through many recent appearances on the Bernie Sanders tour.

Casar appeared recently at a Center for American Progress (CAP) event with Nikki Budzinski (D-IL), vice chair for policy at New Dems, on how to win back the working class.  The two agreed on a lot, including how to choose and communicate key policies. 

Budzinski proposed a “middle of the night” test: The party should prioritize subjects that keep families awake, like grocery prices or child care. Casar supplemented it with a “construction site” test: Those priorities should be explainable and relatable to someone working 12 hours a day on a construction site.

CPC Task Forces have been building their agenda

Back in July, the CPC announced four newly constituted Task Forces “aimed at helping Democrats reclaim the House majority in 2026—with a sharp, populist, pro-working-class agenda that meets the moment.”   They are focused on “lowering costs, ending corporate greed, fighting corruption, and securing better pay and benefits,” and are “part of a broader effort by the CPC to define a Democratic governing agenda that is clear, popular, easy to understand, and quickly delivers material benefits to working people.”

They will prioritize policies that are “not only progressive, but also enjoy support from voters across the ideological and demographic spectrum—from suburban voters to non-college-educated to independents—and could be passed by a Democratic House after the midterms.”

Emily Randall, chair of the CPC task force on pay and benefits, is also a member of New Dems.

Though there are DSA members in the CPC, none were chosen to lead these task forces.  However, Ilhan Omar, who is DSA, will help lead the coordination of Task Force work and take over as Chair of the Caucus’s longstanding Peace & Security Task Force this Congress.  

“Battleship Bill” to be progressives’ version of Contract with America for 2026

CPC is planning to soon introduce what they call the “battleship bill",  according to the Prospect, “designed to be used for campaigning in every contested district in the 2026 midterms, and as a set of deliverables after taking power. It’s not final but is likely to include measures on fighting corruption in D.C., lowering costs at the pharmacy counter, expanding Social Security benefits, and raising taxes on the rich.”

Getting some version of the agenda right, and fighting for it in every district, could be a game-changer for Democrats, especially the non-status-quo New Dems, DSA and CPC. The caucuses can lead their own people with their own agenda. Should the Democratic leadership ever come up with a pale and weak agenda of their own, they can try to get candidates to sign up for that one instead.

DSA setting up for a future party?

According to the Guardian, “a resolution brought up at this year’s DSA convention would create a strategy to build socialism in each of the 50 states and help the DSA build more statewide organizations. The DSA is also providing more support to chapters for their local election campaigns.”

For DSA to fulfill their promise, they must add a strategy on electoral reform.  They’ve already seen what a difference ranked choice voting (RCV) and public campaign finance made in Zohran’s campaign. Fighting for those and other reforms can help change the rules of the game.  It’s the only way we can eventually get America to a multi-party political system, where voters can choose from a true spectrum of political philosophies and agendas. 

If they add this to their mix, the future could be bright for DSA and a democratic socialist approach, especially for an economic agenda.