Sanders-Style Policies Move From Fringe to Democratic Mainstream

The movement’s electoral footprint is evident on primary ballots across the country. In New York, mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani—a democratic socialist—won the city’s mayoral race with a record-high vote total, though he also attracted the most opposing votes in the city’s history. The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) report involvement in more than 130 races this cycle, including successful House primaries such as Darializa Avila Chevalier’s defeat of incumbent Adriano Espaillat in New York. Other notable campaigns include Graham Platner’s short-lived Senate bid in Maine, Abdul El-Sayed’s Democratic Senate primary challenge in Michigan, and the Minnesota Senate primary between Peggy Flanagan and Angie Craig, framed as a proxy contest between progressive and centrist wings.

Newsweek

Think-tank analysts stress that midterm outcomes hinge on turnout rather than persuasion. Jim Kessler, executive vice president for policy at Third Way, observes that extremist nominations can energize opposition voters, while also noting that Democratic Socialists tend to win in districts that heavily favored Kamala Harris (average +36 points) but struggle in swing districts averaging a Trump +8 advantage. Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of Our Revolution, characterizes the coalition’s appeal as a reaction against perceived corporate-controlled government rather than pure ideology.

Newsweek

Critics warn that several hallmark positions—defunding the police, open borders, abolishing federal prisons, and nationalizing major industries—remain “very unpopular” in competitive districts and could guarantee defeat. Kessler further argues that the likelihood of a Democratic Socialist securing the party’s 2028 presidential nomination is “somewhere between slim and none,” and that such a nomination would likely hand Republicans a decisive advantage.

Newsweek

• “This generation has. They're not falling in love with an ideology. They're done with a government that answers to corporations instead of to them.” — Joseph Geevarghese, Executive Director, Our Revolution

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• “When extremists win the nomination it juices turnout on the other end of the ideological spectrum as voters feel their values threatened,” — Jim Kessler, Executive Vice President for Policy, Third Way

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• “For midterm voters this could be an election where they are forced to pick their poison,” — Jim Kessler, Third Way

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• “Democratic Socialists hold some very unpopular positions that, in anything resembling a competitive district, would mean certain defeat,” — Jim Kessler, Third Way

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• “June wins in New York City came in districts that on average supported Kamala Harris by 36 points,” — Jim Kessler, Third Way

Newsweek