Democratic socialists won major races in New York and beyond Tuesday, turning a decade-long rise into a new force in city politics—while questions grow about whether the movement can deliver outside deep-blue neighborhoods.
On Tuesday night, two Democratic Socialists of America-backed candidates did more than win a primary. They beat the Democratic establishment’s choices in congressional contests in New York, signaling that a left-wing insurgency built over years may now be moving from protest to power.
The momentum wasn’t isolated. Several more DSA-aligned candidates also triumphed in state legislative primaries, adding to a broader pattern in which democratic socialism is no longer confined to a few boroughs or a narrow slice of the electorate.
The results land amid a storyline many Democrats already know by heart in New York City: DSA member Zohran Mamdani’s election as mayor last year. Tuesday’s wins suggested it wasn’t a fluke—at least to voters who are tired of how politics has looked and felt.
In Washington. D.C. DSA member Janeese Lewis George won a blowout victory in Democrats’ mayoral primary last week. making her all but certain to be the district’s next mayor. In Seattle, Mayor Katie Wilson—who defeated incumbent mayor Bruce Harrell last year—identifies as a self-described democratic socialist. And in Los Angeles. city council member Nithya Raman. a DSA member. advanced to this November’s runoff against Mayor Karen Bass.
Beyond mayoral races, the DSA has also elected members of city councils in New York, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Chicago, Portland (Oregon), San Antonio, and more. And the group has elected several state legislators in many states—mostly from urban districts.
But the scale of Tuesday’s wins also sharpens the hardest question facing the movement: can it hold its coalition once the politics move from opposition to governing, and can it expand beyond deep-blue cities?
Even in New York, the Democratic left hasn’t swept everything. On Tuesday. establishment-backed Democrats turned back left challengers easily in the state comptroller race and in the state’s most competitive GOP-held House district. The DSA also did not endorse in either race, likely because they believed they had little chance of winning.
Still, the DSA’s favorable standing statewide is not especially impressive, even with New York’s blue tilt. That contradiction—big wins paired with limits—has fueled a debate inside the party about what exactly is driving democratic socialism in the places where it’s working.
Cities have long voted overwhelmingly for Democrats. The rise of democratic socialists, though, is described here as a more recent development—gradually building over about the past decade, then exploding last year.
In many places, the pattern followed a familiar arc: an increasingly sclerotic Democratic establishment that had been in power long enough to drift away from an increasingly left-leaning base, and an energized opposition that tried to fill the gap with organizing.
“Asad Dandia, a public historian from Brooklyn,” said, “The Democratic Party apparatus that has traditionally been responsible for providing goods and services and representation to the people has atrophied.”
The DSA’s strategy in places like New York, according to pollster Adam Carlson, leaned on boots-on-the-ground work. Carlson told of the network’s success in cities: “The NYC DSA is the crown jewel of all the DSA networks around the country.” He added that much of it comes down to community organizing. “One of the reasons why they’re so successful in cities is literally that they’re walkable.”.
There were early breakthroughs in the late 2010s, including the election of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) to Congress. But the Biden administration years brought some stasis for the party. Over the past few years, the prospects for the DSA revived as multiple political pressures pushed voters to seek alternatives.
The Israel-Gaza war became a moral litmus test for many on the left, while the failure of the party establishment to stop Trump from returning to power—followed by his immigration crackdown and other crises—fed an appetite for change.
Then came the everyday crunch. Affordability and the cost of living in the post-Covid economy hit hard in expensive cities, and many millennials and zoomers living there began to view the Democratic establishment as representing the status quo.
Dandia described how that felt for younger adults: “DSA largely comprises young people — people in their 20s and 30s — who are for the most part college-educated and renters. ” adding. “I’m including myself in this category. We don’t have access to the resources and the wealth and the necessities for us to achieve the American dream. We get stuck with being perennial renters. We’d like to advance in life. just like everyone else has. and we haven’t had the opportunity to do so because of these gaping inequalities.”.
In several cities, democratic socialists put forward younger, progressive “change” candidates who channeled dissatisfaction with Democratic establishments in both local politics and nationally. On the moderate side, some Democrats say there has been little infrastructure to meet that challenge.
Jordan Weissmann of the Progressive Policy Institute—sympathetic to moderates—put it sharply: “You have an extremely energized left activist network that really knows how to put together a ground game. whereas on the moderate side there’s just a void.” He continued. “What’s the center-left organization that is supposed to provide any kind of counterweight to DSA?. There’s none.”.
Still, the question isn’t whether the DSA can win somewhere. It’s whether the same force that wins can govern.
Democratic socialists have taken big-city mayoralties and seats on city councils, and they’ll have several members of Congress. But winning beyond blue urban areas—into suburbs, rural areas, and statewide contests—has been harder.
Megan Romer, the DSA national co-chair, told of the map’s shape: “Predictably, our electoral victories map pretty closely onto blue cities and blue states, that’s not surprising.” She added, “We’re not blind to this. It is something that is being worked on.”
The obstacle in suburbs and rural areas isn’t just political geography; it’s also demographics and everyday priorities. Suburbs and rural areas are less Democratic than cities. and even Democratic voters there tend to be older and less left-leaning. with different issues at the top. Carlson said, “Homeowners don’t want to rock the boat as much.”.
Romer pointed to policy messaging that has helped in cities but may not land the same way everywhere: “We talk a lot about housing justice and housing policy. and that is mostly relevant to people who live in places with apartments and lots of landlords.” She said the DSA would have to adapt. “We have to figure out. okay. what policies do we have that can work out here?” She flagged opposition to data centers as one possibility.
Logistics matter too. Carlson described the organizing challenge outside cities: “I’m not going to say it’s impossible. But as it stands right now. without some kind of national unifying force behind it. like a presidential campaign. or maybe a really compelling statewide campaign — it’s tough to see.”.
Even in cities, there’s still a test ahead as socialists move from opposition into governing: can they deliver on the cost of living crisis, and can they show competence when the pressure becomes practical instead of ideological?
That question hangs over Mamdani in particular, because his performance in New York is now more than a local story. He identifies as a “sewer socialist. ” describing an early-20th-century approach where elected socialists emphasized competence in basic services like sanitation and health care rather than grander ideological fights. He has been pragmatic in governance, including keeping his predecessor’s police chief.
So far, that’s working—at least enough to keep his agenda from collapsing immediately. But there are warning signs in the broader record of ambitious progressives who fail to deliver.
Weissmann pointed to San Francisco. saying it had “a very left-leaning government for years. ” and that moderates eventually “really took time to organize and build a coherent vision to respond to the city’s problems” before regaining power. He also referenced Mayor Daniel Lurie. saying Lurie maintained popularity since winning in 2024. with approval in the 70s in one poll this year. while emphasizing public safety and new housing affordability plans.
There’s a familiar story line here: the “change” faction capitalizes on anger at the establishment. but keeping those voters satisfied after taking office is a different kind of job. If democratic socialists hope to succeed outside cities. the first requirement may be blunt—prove they can run places well once they’re no longer campaigning.
In Tuesday’s results, the urgency is obvious. Voters chose younger, organized challengers over entrenched Democratic options in key races. The hard part begins right after the campaign signs come down.
Mamdani is now in the spotlight, and his city’s functioning will be watched for clues about whether the movement’s rise is a moment—or a durable shift in how politics gets done in the country’s biggest places.
Democratic Socialists of America DSA Zohran Mamdani New York primaries Janeese Lewis George Katie Wilson Nithya Raman Karen Bass city council cost of living housing justice urban politics