Democratic-Socialists See Success This Primary Season
Why some candidates have embraced the label, and what that means for 2018
By Divya Sood
The Progressive Teen Staff Writer
In the first half of 2018, information about the firings of top cabinet members, coupled with revelations of officials’ intimate lives and updates on Mueller’s investigation, has dominated news’ headlines. Marchers swarmed cities, protesting for change. The Opinion Column of nearly every newspaper highlighted popular discontent with officials from each point of the political spectrum. Observing the current political chaos and reflecting on their loss in 2016, Democrats recognized the need for change in their party’s platform and campaign approach. In the wake of Trump’s successful neo-Populist strategy, certain Democrats realized that they had to focus on the bread-and-butter issues and their constituents’ needs if they seek congressional victories this November. Originating from Bernie Sanders’ leftist approach, socialism has re-emerged in the Democratic party as seen in a series of Democratic-Socialist primary victories nationwide.
Socialism entails an equal distribution of wealth and power in society via widespread ownership of property, resources, and the societal means of production. In response to the unethical corporate tactics and inhumane labor conditions of nineteenth century industrial capitalism, socialism peaked in the 1910s and 1920s and dissipated after World War II. Serving as a basis of leftist political thought, though its swathe has widened and generalized, certain facets of it remain applicable and relevant in forming today’s Democratic platform. The present day Democratic-Socialist platform includes pushes for universal healthcare, higher minimum wage, and higher taxes on the wealthy.
Although Sanders’s socialist approach was unsuccessful at the time, he established the basis of recent primary victories by developing a groundswell of supporters, who were frustrated with the government’s inability to empathize with and act according to its constituents’ concerns. As a result, since November of 2016, the membership of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) surged from 5,000 to 35,000 members. Correspondingly, the number of nationwide and local DSA chapters has increased by over 140; ten of these newly formed chapters are in the staunchly conservative Texas.
Moreover, The Harvard institute of Politics found that fifty-one percent of millennials were unhappy with the existing capitalist system due to the financial burdens it entailed such as lingering student debt, a higher cost of living, and unfavorable job prospects. Let down by the capitalist system and angered at the Democrats’ loss of contact with the ordinary worker, voters voted Democratic-Socialists this primary season, hoping to induce meaningful change and revert the modern Democratic platform to FDR’s New Deal platform. The subsequent Democratic-Socialist primary successes reflect the overwhelming popular discontent and desire for change in the status quo.
For instance, Pennsylvania, one of the twelve swing states, had Democratic-Socialist victories by progressive women in cities. In Pittsburgh, Summer Lee and Sarah Innamorato defeated veteran state legislators for Democratic nominations. Supported by DSA and Our Revolution, their campaigns were concentrated on addressing the drawbacks of capitalism and directly outreaching to the electorate. Considering the difficulty of expanding support of a radical platform, Daniel Moraff, a campaign organizer for Lee, deemed her primary nomination as “a blueprint for how you can run a campaign on a radical platform and reach the [needed] demographics” and seeks to “[keep] the fire burning” until November and beyond. Across the state, Philadelphia was home to Socialist successes as well, seen in the nominations of state House candidates Elizabeth Fiedler and Kristin Seale. Fiedler referred to her campaign platform as “what democracy should like” as she celebrated her win on May 15th.
The Democratic-Socialist landslide manifested itself from coast-to-coast. Texan Franklin Bynum won the Democratic nomination for criminal court judge. Hawaiian Kaniela Ing won a congressional nomination. Gayle McLaughlin won the Democratic lieutenant governor nomination in California. Dennis Prater of Tennessee won the nomination for county commissioner. Despite these candidates’ socialist affiliation, they are neither third party candidates nor revolutionary radicals, as their Republican counterparts claim. Rather, they have embraced the Democratic-Socialist title as a badge of honor rather than a liability, hoping to “[reach] out to the people who aren’t being spoken to at all.”
Unpredictable changes within party platforms show that there are always individuals who feel isolated from the reach of policy, whether it be the farmer in rural Oklahoma, the blue-collar worker in Pennsylvania, or the millennial who just entered the workforce. As they feel their voices are unheard in today’s political realm, their will demand change; their votes reflect the necessity for change. After all, a democratic nation comprised of people from all backgrounds, ethnicity, and rungs on the socioeconomic ladder entails a constantly shifting ideology. The rise of the Democratic-Socialists indicates one — or both — of the two possibilities: Either Democratic voters are unhappy with the current party platform and seek internal reform or the general population is discontent with Republican federal majorities and look to leftists for change. However, while the rise of socialism reintroduces egalitarian principles of the original Democratic party, it will also alienate moderates, independents, and on-the-fence- voters who may not share as strong views. Likewise, the presence of socialism in the Democratic party platform could hinder moderate political officials seeking Democratic nominations. By alienating moderates and deepening today’s party polarization, both political candidates and officials alike will inevitably focus on their party’s goals rather than their constituents’ needs. No matter what, the people’s voices must be represented. Regardless of their position on the political scale, all politicians ought to recognize their constituents’ needs as a whole even if it comes at the expense of their party’s.
