Democratic socialists notch wins in major city races
Janeese Lewis George’s D.C. primary win adds to a run of democratic socialist gains in mayoral contests across major U.S. cities.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
4 min read
Democratic socialists are gaining ground in several big-city mayoral races, adding new pressure on the Democratic Party’s centrist wing in urban politics. The latest example is Janeese Lewis George, a D.C. Council member who won Washington’s Democratic mayoral primary and is positioned for the November election in a city where Democrats dominate, according to The Associated Press.
Lewis George campaigned on a broad local-government agenda that includes subsidized or free child care, expanded help for homebuyers and community-based efforts aimed at reducing crime, AP reported. She has also promised to oppose President Donald Trump’s attempts to exert more control over the capital.
“People are tired of hearing what government can’t do. They want to hear what government can do,” Lewis George told AP before the primary.
Her win marks a shift in Washington after decades of more centrist city leadership, AP reported. It also places her alongside other members of the Democratic Socialists of America who have advanced in major-city politics over the past year.
A run of urban wins
Zohran Mamdani defeated Andrew Cuomo on his path to becoming New York City mayor, Katie Wilson won Seattle’s mayoral race last fall, and Nithya Raman secured a place in a November runoff against Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, according to AP. All are members of DSA.
DSA has grown from a small organization into one with more than 100,000 members nationwide over the past decade, AP reported. The group’s expansion followed the presidential campaigns of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who also calls himself a democratic socialist.
AP reported that there is little evidence of a single national strategy tying the candidates together. It is also unclear whether voters are responding most to promises of better city services, opposition to Trump or broader criticism of capitalism.
Eric Stern, a Democratic strategist with Fight Agency who worked on Mamdani’s campaign, told AP the candidates are drawing support from voters frustrated with current political leadership and attracted to economic populism. He said Democratic voters appear more open to backing the most progressive candidate in mayoral contests than in U.S. House races.
Limits and risks for the left
The trend has not displaced moderates across Democratic city politics. AP noted that mayors in Atlanta, Houston, Miami and San Francisco have won recent elections on more moderate platforms.
Progressive officeholders have also faced backlash. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who was backed by the city’s DSA chapter in 2023, has drawn criticism from moderates and liberals over immigration, the budget and public safety, according to AP. Progressive district attorneys in several places have also been removed through recalls or public pressure after frustration over public disorder following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Trump has presented another challenge for liberal city leaders through his immigration and law enforcement policies, AP reported. Washington is especially exposed because it is a federal district rather than a state or city with full autonomy.
Asked this month about the possible election of a democratic socialist as D.C. mayor, Trump told reporters, “Maybe we take back Washington and run it on a federal basis,” according to AP. “We won’t put up with it.”
Ravi Mangla of the Working Families Party, which often endorses the same candidates as DSA, told AP the party is preparing to target more mayoral offices in large cities this fall and in 2028. He said voters are looking for candidates willing to confront powerful interests.
Mamdani and Lewis George both describe themselves as “sewer socialists,” a term AP said refers to an older tradition of socialist mayors focused on public works and competent city services. AP reported that the label is being used to link left-wing politics to voters’ concerns about affordability and local government performance.
Some D.C. voters were not focused on the socialist label before the primary. Owen Fitzgerald, a University of Maryland graduate student who supported Lewis George, told AP he learned she was a democratic socialist only after seeing news coverage, but backed her because he believed she would oppose Trump and work to make the city more affordable.
This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.