Video DSA-backed Democratic candidates campaign ahead of New York primary The ‘Outnumbered’ panel discusses the rise of socialism in Democratic politics and weighs in on key New York primary races.
In fact, it's becoming the party’s calling card.
MAMDANI'S POLITICAL EARTHQUAKE ROCKS DEMOCRATS, DIVIDING PARTY ON PATH FORWARD
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani endorsed state Assembly Member Claire Valdez in the Democratic primary for New York’s 7th Congressional District. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images ; Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The atmosphere changed when Zohran Mamdani came out of nowhere to trounce Andrew Cuomo and wind up in New York's Gracie Mansion.
Not only is he the city's first Muslim mayor and anti-Israel, but he is a self-proclaimed socialist.
Here's the problem: While that might be an asset in blue cities, it's a huge albatross in a national or statewide election.
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Most voters in these contests are not willing to march under the socialist banner.
In these broader elections, what helps in a Democratic primary is a poison pill.
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Turns out that liberal and independent voters are fed up with the Democratic establishment. They feel it's a party of elitists playing the same old rhetorical game and not delivering for the working class. They resent the empty promises and the obsession with pronouns, "pregnant people" and trans men playing women's sports. They feel abandoned.
But in intra-party contests, the secret ingredient seems to be charisma. Mamdani won over New Yorkers by campaigning his heart out.
After promising such benefits as free buses and government-run grocery stores, he has run smack into reality, where he needs help from Albany to achieve even a fraction of his goals.
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And while Mamdani made no secret of being anti-Israel and tried to mend fences with Jewish voters, he worked against Democratic incumbents in pushing pro-Palestinian candidates for Congress.
He's not alone. In Washington, voters elected Janeese Lewis George, who is also a proud socialist. (Winning the Democratic primary here is tantamount to election.) She promised government help for child care and tougher regulation of utilities. So D.C. has its own Mamdani.
Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George joined parents, educators, and organizers at a SPACEs In Action and Blandi’s Childcare Center rally to demand funding for the Pay Equity Fund and childcare subsidies at the Blandis Childcare Center in Washington, D.C., on March 27, 2026. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for SPACEs in Action)
And Seattle elected as mayor Katie Wilson, co-founder of the Transit Riders Union. She promised affordable housing, reduced homelessness and to "Trump-proof Seattle," especially on being a sanctuary city.
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AOC was the first ultra-liberal to capitalize on this, defeating a longtime incumbent and now so famous from social media that she's flirting with a presidential run.
Another case study is Maine's Graham Platner, a Marine veteran who has survived a series of scandals (Nazi tattoo, sexting other women) that would have knocked out most candidates. In the primary, he trounced the state's 78-year-old governor, and many liberals are willing to overlook his admittedly checkered past.
Graham Platner, Democratic US Senate candidate for Maine, during a primary election night event at the Blue Hill YMCA in Blue Hill, Maine. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Platner has acknowledged having problems with alcohol, PTSD, and being a bad boyfriend after returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
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The defining characteristics of these new-wave socialists: They tend to be younger and generate excitement on the trail.
The MAGA coalition has been broader, at least until the Iran war, soaring prices and the never-ending warfare over the Jeffrey Epstein files.
But that required Donald Trump first getting elected and then bending the Republican Party to his will. His retribution against GOP candidates who defied him, knocking them off in primaries, has sent an unmistakable message to Republicans that dissent leads to political death.
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But it's hard to see the capital-S socialists prevailing in a general election. Most voters still recoil from anything that reeks of socialism, however well it may play in New York, Washington and Seattle.
The Dems are leaderless at the moment, though that may change after the midterms. But for now, the new-wave socialists look to be clobbered in almost any general election contest. Even given Trump's current unpopularity, they can swim in blue waters but not in the larger green ocean of voters who head the other way from the turbulent tide of socialism.
Howard Kurtz is a media and political analyst and the former host of FOX News Channel's MediaBuzz. Based in Washington, D.C., he joined the network in 2013 and regularly appears on Special Report with Bret Baier and The Story with Martha MacCallum among other programs.
