Anyone who denies that the Democratic Socialists are on a political roll are either foolish or naïve. All over the country socialists are gaining ground, and it’s not clear whether the Republicans are taking their progress seriously or not. It’s important to remember that this ideology was given new life with Barack Obama, even though he hid his allegiances to socialism. When Obama first ran for the presidency, Stanley Kurtz warned us of his commitments:

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A personable figure, a thoughtful politician, and an inspiring orator, Obama has hidden his core political beliefs from the American people—sometimes by directly misrepresenting his past and sometimes by omitting or parceling out damaging information to disguise its real importance. The president presents himself as a post-ideological pragmatist, yet his current policies grow directly from the nexus of socialist associates and theories that has shaped him throughout his adult life.

Since entry onto the national stage, Obama pursued a “stealth socialism” strategy, which continued after he left office. This entailed presenting himself as a mainstream candidate, and after he was elected, a subtle promotion of socialist rhetoric:

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Obama’s true convictions would occasionally surface spontaneously, most notably when he spoke of ‘spreading the wealth around,’ proposed a ‘civilian national security force,’ and declared ‘we are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.’

Once in office, Obama threw his voters under to [sic] bus to pursue his socialist agenda that no one voted for.

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Obama’s stealth agenda was successful, and now we have candidates all over the country who openly own their democratic socialist positions. These people run for office at various levels of government, from governors to city councils. Some of them even managed to fool their citizens by using Obama’s strategy: presenting themselves as mainstream candidates, but as soon as they enter office, promoting socialist strategies. For example, Governor Abigail Spanberger, who ran as a “moderate,” has decided not to cooperate with I.C.E., and she is also pushing for legalized recreational marijuana. I’ll let you decide whether those actions are moderate or not.

Stealth socialists have successfully misled people who think they know the positions of the candidates in their own party. Jim Kessler, executive vice president for policy at Third Way, a center-left think tank, doesn’t even realize he’s been misguided: he believes that Gov. Abigail Spanberger and New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill are centrists. Although both women tried to present themselves as moderates, their actions reflect socialist policies.

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But other candidates with bold socialist positions are now winning races across the board:

Though big-city mayoral contests have gotten the most attention, democratic socialists have won races in other cities with lesser-known candidates. 

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On the same night Lewis George won the mayoral primary in DC, Mathewos Samson, a community organizer and democratic socialist, won the primary for a Georgia state House seat in Atlanta. In May, progressive Chris Rabb easily won the Democratic primary for a congressional seat in Philadelphia. Democratic socialists also hold city council seats in places such as Minneapolis and Louisville.

The democratic socialists are not sitting on their laurels. They are reframing the descriptions of their goals in order to appeal to a wider population:

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Mamdani and Lewis George are both self-described ‘sewer socialists’ who emphasize the need for responsive government services rather than critiques of market economics. The phrase recalls the socialist Gilded Age mayors whom critics derided as too preoccupied with managing public works projects.

The term’s revival is partly a strategic move to align leftist ideas with concerns over affordability and the economy, voters' top concern in the midterm elections, and shift the public perception of democratic socialists from firebrands who support radical policies to independent-minded public servants.

Those changes to the images of Democratic Socialists have just begun. They’ve learned to address the needs of the public (even if their proposals are unrealistic and unsustainable) and worry about outcomes later. They know their priority well: grabbing power.

Image generated by ChatGPT.