Democratic Socialists: One Vote, One Time?

By William L. Anderson, Mises Institute

Even a casual observer of America’s political scene can see that the Democratic Socialists of America have become a powerful force in electoral politics, as their candidates are winning one Democratic Party primary after another. This past week saw three more radical leftists winning congressional primaries in New York City, taking down two well-established members of Congress in the process. Love them or hate them, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Occasio-Cortez, and Zohran Mamdani have become major political kingmakers in our body politic.

Unlike many of MAGA candidates anointed by President Donald Trump who have won primaries, the DSA-associated Democrats who won this week will almost surely win congressional elections and have excellent chances of prevailing in US Senate races in Texas and Maine and could well flip the Senate to the Democrats. With Trump’s debacles in Iran and at home and his polling numbers at new lows, his political base is declining, and he is a weakened political force.

Furthermore, it is doubtful that the socialist political momentum will abate before the 2028 elections, and it is certain that in the meantime, not only will they gain a presence in Congress and the statehouses, but will also advance their numbers in municipal elections, no matter how successful they may be at governing. Even though Mamdani is unlikely to bring down real rental prices, provide free buses, or create functional government grocery stores, his political support will not wane, and he will be a major political strongman for many years to come.

All hand-wringing aside, how does one assess what is happening and, more importantly, how powerful will the socialists become over the next several years? This question is not trivial, as the DSA recently rebooted its 2024 platform if ever enacted will permanently change the political and economic landscape in this country.

The DSA Platform

In a recent article, I argued that while socialism is present mostly in economic terms, it actually is a political doctrine. That is, its success is always going to be measured in political terms, as we are seeing right now. Given that socialism is a doctrine aimed at maximizing political power for its adherents, one should not be surprised that the new DSA platform seems to find ways to keep socialists in power forever.

Entitled “Workers Deserve More,” the document is divided into four parts...(READ THIS FULL ARTICLE FREE HERE).