White-collar workers form a growing share of socialist ranks
DSA survey data and labor-market stress point to rising political interest among educated professionals and tech workers.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
4 min read
White-collar workers and tech employees make up a visible share of the Democratic Socialists of America, according to member survey data cited by Fortune. The figures add context to a broader political shift in which economic insecurity is shaping how some educated professionals describe their class position.
A Democratic Socialists of America member survey found that 13% of members in 2021 were white-collar workers. That was lower than 21% in 2017, but well above the 3% recorded in 2013, according to the survey.
The same 2021 survey said 9% of DSA members worked in technology, though it did not provide comparable tech-sector figures for earlier years. Blue-collar workers accounted for 4% of members in 2021, compared with 3% in 2017 and 2% in 2013.
Retail, food and other service workers made up 6% of DSA membership in 2021, up from 2% in 2013, according to the survey. Among respondents who were at least 25 years old, more than 80% held bachelor’s degrees.
The survey also showed a mixed income profile. Forty-five percent of respondents reported household incomes below $60,000, while 28% said they made at least $100,000.
Economic anxiety reaches professional workers
Fortune reported that the DSA figures may say more about the organization’s membership than about the U.S. working class as a whole. Still, recent election results have given democratic socialists more visibility, including Zohran Mamdani’s win in New York City’s mayoral race last year and other gains this year.
Public views of capitalism have also weakened, according to polling cited by Fortune. A Wall Street Journal survey found that 51% of respondents said capitalism was working poorly or not working at all, up from 37% in 2015.
Fortune linked that skepticism to years of financial strain, including the Great Recession, when millions of Americans lost jobs and homes as large banks received bailouts. More recently, the report said high technology valuations have increased the number of billionaires and produced the world’s first trillionaire, even as living costs have cut into wage gains.
The DSA survey was conducted before the artificial intelligence boom that began in late 2022, Fortune reported. Since then, technology companies have announced waves of job cuts and entry-level openings have become harder to find.
Fortune said not all tech layoffs can be assigned to AI, noting that some executives may be using the technology as cover for reducing payrolls after earlier hiring. It also cited research that points to remote work, rather than AI, as one reason early-career jobs have weakened.
Job data show pressure on graduates and tech staff
The New York Federal Reserve said unemployment among recent college graduates was 5.6% in March, up from 3.9% in March 2022. That was also above the overall U.S. unemployment rate of 4.2% in March 2026.
Challenger, Gray & Christmas said the U.S. technology sector has cut about 140,000 jobs so far this year, more than any other industry. The firm said May’s total of 38,242 tech cuts was the highest monthly figure since August 2024.
Gustavo Gordillo, a co-leader of the DSA’s New York City chapter, told The New York Times that people are drawn to the group because they do not want to feel powerless during economic hardship. He said new members are taught that people who work for a living can be considered working class.
“A lot of tech workers are working class,” Gordillo told the Times. “We’re trying to build a broad movement—we think of most DSA members as being working class.”
Financial stress is not limited to lower-income households, according to the Harris Poll. In a survey last year, 64% of six-figure earners said that income level was less a marker of success than the minimum needed to stay afloat.
Harris said many higher earners were taking or considering steps such as side hustles, selling belongings, skipping meals, renting out all or part of their home, or using debt consolidation or bankruptcy. Libby Rodney, Harris Poll’s chief strategy officer, said the firm’s data showed high earners were “financially anxious” and managing debt and survival strategies despite the appearance of affluence.
This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.