DSA Convenes, Argues, and Celebrates [View all]

[justaprogressive]

CHICAGO – It’s been a tumultuous decade for the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), and an even more intense year. So when 1,200 delegates from across the country came to Chicago last weekend for the group’s biannual convention, there was much to debrief. And argue about. And celebrate.

Most recently, New York City DSA member Zohran Mamdani burst into national attention after winning the city’s Democratic mayoral primary, beating Andrew Cuomo and becoming a national target for Republicans (and some Democrats). It’s impossible to ignore DSA’s hand in his win: The organization created a network of tens of thousands of canvassers who spent months going door-to-door in all five boroughs to bring voters Mamdani’s socialist message, tightly focused on basic economic issues.

DSA badly needed that victory. Last summer, the organization was hit with three major electoral defeats. First, in the most expensive House primary in history, AIPAC money and corporate Democrats pushed Rep. Jamaal Bowman from his New York seat. Bowman had a complicated history with DSA over his record on Israel (some members had sought to expel him) but nonetheless was endorsed by the group and had been proof that socialists could gain federal office.

Just two months after Bowman’s loss, Missouri Rep. Cori Bush lost her seat in much the same way. The third defeat was the dispiriting presidential campaign and Trump’s eventual election, which left many DSA members all the more disillusioned with American electoral politics and the Democratic Party’s stance on Palestine.

https://prospect.org/politics/2025-08-14-dsa-convenes-argues-and-celebrates/]