Tipsheet

Socialists Won Big in New York and Colorado – Now They’re Coming for These States

Jeff Charles
Jeff Charles  |  July 07, 2026 12:15 PM

After racking up a series of significant primary wins, Democratic socialists are setting their sights on two new states: Michigan and Wisconsin.

This comes after candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) pulled off victories in Colorado, New York, and elsewhere.

From Politico:

DSA officials and allies told POLITICO they’ve already shifted organizers, volunteers and resources toward battleground Michigan and Wisconsin, where progressive Abdul El-Sayed is locked in a hotly contested Democratic primary for Michigan Senate and DSA-backed Francesca Hong is gaining steam in her primary for Wisconsin governor.

Both El-Sayed and Hong are planning a series of major rallies ahead of their primaries, and their campaigns and DSA organizers are currently discussing bringing many of the movement’s biggest stars — including recent winners from New York and Colorado — to generate attention and shore up the broader national effort. That will likely include a trip to Michigan for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who just made a major endorsement for El-Sayed.

“It’s DSA summer. We can’t stop racking up wins,” said Emma Vigeland, co-host of the long-running progressive program The Majority Report, who has campaigned for DSA candidates this primary season. “We’re seeing the culmination of 10 years of democratic socialism becoming more mainstream.”

Sustaining that summer momentum will be a tall task, as the DSA and the insurgent left try to harness the infrastructure they need to extend their wins into the battlegrounds.

But popular Twitch streamer Hasan Piker and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) are already planning to hit the trail to boost DSA picks in Michigan and Wisconsin ahead of the August primary.

A Pew Research survey released last month found that while most are neutral toward socialist candidates, about 32 percent say they favor such politicians while only 11 percent say they dislike them.

Among Democratic voters, 52 percent of liberals say they favor Democratic socialist leaders while 43 percent held neutral views and four percent disliked them. Interestingly enough, white Democrats were the most favorable, with 40 percent expressing favorable views of these candidates. Socialists appeal to 30 percent of Asians, 21 percent of blacks, and 20 percent of Hispanics.

In New York, Darializa Avila Chevalier defeated five-term incumbent Adriano Espaillat to secure the nomination to represent the state’s 13 congressional district. Claire Valdez won the primary for the seventh district.

In Colorado, 29-year-old Melat Kiros beat 15-term Rep. Diana DeGette.

These wins are part of a broader wave that could be sweeping local and state level races as more Democratic voters have become disenchanted with the establishment wing of the party.

DSA has been focusing primarily on local and statewide elections as a way of gradually building power and influence over the past decade. Now, they are trying to expand their reach into the federal government. Their candidates have gained traction when competing in safe Democrat districts where the primary winner typically wins the general race.

Over time, the DSA has expanded its membership and focused on developing leaders and moving the needle on policy issues related to housing, policing, and taxes.

Leftist billionaire George Soros, through his Open Society Foundation, began directing millions of dollars into prosecutor races to back candidates who favor reduced prosecutions for certain crimes and a lighter touch on punishing criminals.