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Socialism on the March!

Socialism on the March!

Last updated on: June 30, 2026 at 6:00 am by Gene Veith

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Socialism on the March! 2026-06-27T13:45:40-04:00 Gene Veith

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The 250th year of the American republic is marked by what could be a significant development: Marxist socialism has become a force in mainstream American politics.

As we’ve blogged about, “Democratic Socialism” teaches that the overthrow of capitalism foreseen by Karl Marx can best be accomplished not by violent revolution, but by political means. Capitalism is situated largely in Western democracies, thus bearing the seeds of its own destruction. With a democracy, the masses can rise up at the ballot box to overthrow the capitalist ruling class and impose the socialist order.

Though today’s Democratic Socialist party is different from the Communist Party in trying to take over the government, rather than trying to overthrow it, make no mistake: Their goals are the same.

Now, 35 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, socialism is on the march!

The most dramatic breakthrough has happened in New York City, the capital of capitalism, home of Wall Street, the stock exchange, and the world’s leading financial corporations. The city elected as its mayor Democratic Socialist party member Zohran Mamdani. Not only that, in the recent primary elections Mamdani endorsed three candidates for U.S. Congress representing the city who are affiliated with the Democratic Socialist party: Claire Valdez, Brad Lander (former member), and Darializa Avila Chevalier.

All of them won their primary elections against already highly progressive Democratic incumbents. And because these districts always vote Democratic, they will almost certainly become members of the House of Representatives. As Will Rahn pointed out, this means “effectively doubling the number of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) members in Congress over the course of an evening.” (The others are Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.)

That’s still a small number, of course, but it’s the impact of Democratic Socialism on the mainstream Democratic Party that is the most significant.

In the New York primary elections, turnout was huge, and the socialist ticket attracted not only the usual affluent white progressives but also the working class! Marxists and progressives in general have been embarrassed that their supporters have mainly been guilt-ridden capitalists of the upper middle class, while the proletariat has become the base of Donald Trump. It now appears that an overt socialist pitch can unite the two!

Furthermore, Bernie Sanders also endorsed left-wing candidates across the nation, and most of them also won their primary elections! These were mostly members of the Democratic Party who are so far to the left that they align with Democratic Socialist convictions and therefore win that party’s support. As the moderates in their number keep getting defeated, many mainline democrats are starting to believe that the path forward for their success is not moderation but extremism. Democratic socialism is an ideology, not primarily the party that bears that label–as the party itself makes clear–so infiltrating the mainline Democratic party and endorsing whatever candidates embrace the cause is clearly the way forward. (See Inside the DSA’s Hostile Takeover of the Democratic Party.)

And now, invigorated by their victories, the socialists are planning for the 2028 presidential elections. (See Democratic socialists are coming for 2028.) To be sure, the more moderate and mainline Democrats are trying to turn the tide, but we’ll see how successful they are.

Many Republicans and other conservatives are responding to the prospect of a socialist takeover of the Democratic Party with glee. They believe that such a leftwing turn will make Democrats easier to beat. (See Republicans Celebrate Socialist Wins in Democratic Primaries.)

But I’m not so sure about that. As of last year, according to a Gallup poll, only 54% of Americans had a positive view of capitalism, a record low. Though only 39% had a positive view of socialism, I suspect the 46% with qualms about capitalism could be up for grabs.

Republicans don’t seem to be taking seriously just how unpopular President Trump really is. Recent polls show his approval rating to be in the high 30’s or low 40’s, but the percentage of Americans who strongly disapprove of the president is 48%, with only 22% strongly approving of the job he is doing.

Republicans, though, like him just fine. His approval rating in his own party by a recent measure is 68%. Primary voters in 2028 will likely look for someone to inherit Trump’s mantle, so that the race will probably be dominated by candidates claiming to be the most like Trump.

But a significant majority of Americans, at least 60%, do not approve of him, and nearly half of Americans (48%) can’t stand him. I could see them voting for what they see as his polar opposite: a socialist. Last time, the lesser-of-two-evils voters tended to cast their ballots for Trump rather than Harris. But with today’s economy, the Iran war, the tariffs, and other unpopular Trump policies, I could see that vote going to an engaging, personable, relatable candidate from the hard left, if the Democrats can find one.

Couple that with the hungry-for-a-change voters, plus the Democrats’ usual base, plus their possible inroads with the working class, and I can see the possibility of socialists and socialist-endorsed politicians winning the White House and Congress.

As I’ve said, most pundits hope they are right. I tend to hope that I’m wrong.

Tomorrow, I want to conduct a thought experiment on what could happen if Democratic Socialism ever gets its way.

Photo By David Shankbone – Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=167263182

President Donald Trump

Zohran Mamdani

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