A three-alarm fire was set off when a small number of Democratic Socialists of America experienced electoral success in New York & elsewhere. Various levels of the Democratic party have reacted with concern. Is not the Democratic party big enough to encompass some Socialist Americans? President Trump immediately jumped into the picture…seeing an opportunity to use his “scare tactics” claiming there was a “resurgence of the communist menace in our land.” He doesn’t know that Communism and Socialism are quite different.
Communism, as envisioned by Marx, is a future classless, stateless society where resources are held in common and goods are distributed according to need. Socialism is a political philosophy that allows some form of government and may permit varying degrees of markets and private property.
Rather than worrying about Communism taking over the country the real lesson from these few NY elections should be a wake-up call for both parties. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) pointed out only 18% to 25% of registered Democrats voted in each of the closed primaries for the three contested NY house nominations. Turnout not viewpoint is a critical factor. If you want to win don’t let huge numbers of voters sit at home.
The campaign lesson of New York Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani could be used by Republican or Democratic candidates for any office anywhere. His campaign generally points to a combination of organizing, messaging and campaign strategy rather than a single factor.
Mamdani built a large grassroots volunteer operation. Volunteers knocked on more that one million doors, made phone calls, sent texts and used “relational organizing” – encouraging friends and family to vote. A strong outreach to younger voters making extensive use of social media, short videos and events that appealed to younger New York voters which helped attract many first-time volunteers and voters. They didn’t rely on television advertising but instead, the campaign emphasized face-to- face conversations and candidate appearances. Another important strategy was to contrast himself with establishment figures and focus on change.
2026 candidates need to use new get-out-the vote organizations to tackle the majority of voters sitting at home. For those who have been involve in politics for years…don’t think for a minute that the old ways of winning will work in today’s environment…look at the New York elections. New people with new ideas need to be brought into the campaign. Candidates from Congress to city council and state legislature need to realize manpower always take the place of money.
These are different times…many are turned off by the chaos of the last two years. Citizens are disgusted with the “you can buy me” approach to governing taken by President Trump…and that Congress has stood aside allowing him to take their powers. What that says is…this is the time for new ideas and new people at the grassroots to do what New York Democratic Socialists did…work their butts off.