The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is the largest socialist organization in the United States and an increasingly influential force in Democratic politics. Although it is an activist organization rather than a political party, its candidates generally compete in Democratic primaries. By July 2026, DSA claimed more than 100,000 members and chapters in all 50 states.
Its rise was symbolized by the election of DSA member Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City on November 4, 2025.
Origins
Michael Harrington, DSA’s principal founder, established the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee (DSOC) in 1973. He advocated pursuing socialist reforms through labor unions, social movements, and the Democratic Party while opposing authoritarian communism.
He also defended Israel and Jewish self-determination. In 1975, he described Zionism as “the national liberation movement of a Jewish people asserting their right to self-determination.” He befriended Israeli Labor Party leader Shimon Peres through the Socialist International and sometimes jokingly called himself a “Labor Zionist.” He simultaneously supported Palestinian self-determination and an independent Palestinian state.
DSA was founded in Detroit in March 1982 through the merger of DSOC and the New American Movement (NAM), a socialist-feminist organization founded in 1971 by New Left activists. NAM also included former members of the Communist Party USA. Communism and the Middle East were among the most contentious issues during the merger negotiations.
The new organization had approximately 6,000 members. Rather than establish an independent political party, DSA worked to elect socialists, usually through the Democratic Party, and develop alliances with labor, feminist, civil rights, and community organizations.
Electoral Growth and Mamdani
DSA remained politically marginal until Bernie Sanders’s 2016 presidential campaign attracted a new generation to democratic socialism. Sanders has never formally joined DSA, but his campaign, followed by Donald Trump’s presidential election, helped produce a surge in membership.
In 2018, DSA members Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tlaib were elected to Congress. DSA-backed candidates Jamaal Bowman and Cori Bush followed in 2020, although both lost Democratic primaries in 2024.
Mamdani’s relationship with DSA went beyond receiving an endorsement. A member of the organization, he was elected to the New York State Assembly in 2020 and participated in its Socialists in Office formation. He also led the Not on Our Dime campaign against New York charities accused of supporting Israeli settlements.
His mayoral campaign combined proposals including a rent freeze, fare-free buses, universal childcare, and city-owned grocery stores with a field operation developed partly through years of NYC-DSA organizing. The campaign reported mobilizing more than 100,000 volunteers and knocking on approximately three million doors. DSA called his victory “the most monumental electoral victory for the US socialist movement in the last century.”
Platform
DSA’s 2026 program, Workers Deserve More!, presents its immediate policy demands as steps toward replacing capitalism with a “democratic socialist republic.” It states that DSA is “building a party” governed by the working class and calls for drafting a new Constitution. Its economic proposals include public ownership of the largest corporations and essential industries, universal healthcare and rent control, publicly owned housing, free education, cancellation of student debt, a 32-hour workweek, and higher taxes on corporations and wealthy individuals. The program also supports eventually abolishing the police and prison systems, abolishing ICE, granting legal status to all immigrants, and phasing out fossil fuels. Its proposed political restructuring includes abolishing the Senate and Electoral College, introducing proportional representation and multiparty elections, and replacing the president and Supreme Court with institutions subordinate to Congress. In foreign policy, it calls for sharply reducing military spending, closing overseas bases, and ending sanctions against Cuba, Venezuela, and Iran.
DSA national co-chair Megan Romer underscored the scope of the program. Asked about specific provisions, she endorsed abolishing the Senate and ICE, replacing the presidency and Supreme Court in their current forms, defunding the Pentagon, and placing most large corporations under public ownership. She described the abolition of national borders and the phasing out of prisons as long-term objectives. Romer’s answers demonstrated that the program’s most far-reaching proposals are positions publicly defended by the organization’s national leadership.
Endorsement Requirements
DSA’s endorsement process is decentralized, and requirements vary among chapters. NYC-DSA requires meetings, an extensive questionnaire, candidate forums, and votes by multiple membership bodies. Endorsed candidates receive access to volunteer canvassers, phone banks, fundraising networks, and campaign organizers.
Publicly released 2026 questionnaires asked candidates whether they would identify and run as socialists, campaign with other DSA candidates, endorse future DSA candidates, and reject contributions from corporations, corporate PACs, real estate developers, lobbyists, professional landlords, and law enforcement organizations. Candidates were also asked to develop their platforms with NYC-DSA, permit it to operate independent canvasses and retain voter-contact data, and participate in collective decision-making through Socialists in Office after election.
Israel and Anti-Zionism
DSA’s position on Israel changed dramatically after Harrington’s era. The organization endorsed the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement in 2017.
On October 7, 2023, DSA expressed solidarity with the Palestinians and declared that the Hamas-led attack was “a direct result of Israel’s apartheid regime” and “not unprovoked.” It condemned the killing of civilians but did not mention Hamas by name. Maurice Isserman, a founding member and Harrington biographer, resigned after 41 years, calling DSA’s response “politically and morally bankrupt.”
In 2024, the national organization withdrew its conditional endorsement of Ocasio-Cortez after she failed to meet demands that included opposing all aid to Israel, supporting BDS, and rejecting efforts DSA believed equated anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism. The NYC chapter retained its endorsement.
At its 2025 convention, DSA adopted “For a Fighting Anti-Zionist DSA” by a vote of 675-524. The resolution described Zionism as a “racist, imperialist, settler-colonial project”. It endorsed Palestinian resistance, the right of return, Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine, and Palestinian self-determination “from the river to the sea.”
The resolution requires nationally and locally endorsed candidates to support BDS and avoid affiliations with the Israeli government or organizations DSA defines as Zionist lobby groups, including AIPAC, Democratic Majority for Israel, and J Street. Public opposition to BDS, equating anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism, or declaring that “Israel has a right to defend itself” can constitute an expellable offense. Expulsion requires a two-thirds vote of DSA’s National Political Committee.
DSA’s 2026 program calls for ending all American military and economic assistance to Israel, recognizing the Palestinian “right to resist military occupation,” and establishing a “free Palestine with Jerusalem as its capital.” DSA maintains that anti-Zionism is distinct from anti-Semitism and argues that accusations of anti-Semitism are often used to suppress Palestinian advocacy.
Communist and Revolutionary Currents
DSA officially distinguishes democratic socialism from authoritarian communism, but it contains organized revolutionary and Marxist-Leninist factions. The Red Star caucus states that its objective is to overthrow capitalism, achieve communism, and help develop a revolutionary vanguard party. DSA national co-chair Megan Romer is a Red Star member. In 2024, the caucus published an article titled “We Do Not Condemn Hamas, and Neither Should You,” although this was not an official DSA statement.
DSA has also sent two official delegations to communist Cuba. Its October 2023 delegation of more than 40 members was hosted by the ruling Communist Party and met government ministries and state-affiliated organizations. A second delegation of 40 DSA officials and members visited in October 2025 and met Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernando de Cossío at the Cuban Foreign Ministry.
These developments have blurred the ideological boundary Harrington attempted to draw between democratic socialism and communism. However, DSA continues to describe itself as democratic, internally pluralistic, and opposed to authoritarian rule.
Sources: Mitchell Cohen, “Democratic Socialism, Israel and the Jews: An Interview with Michael Harrington,” Fathom, (1975; reprinted March 2020).
Joseph M. Schwartz, “A History of Democratic Socialists of America 1971-2017,” Democratic Socialists of America, (July 2017).
“End the Violence, End the Occupation, Free Palestine,” Democratic Socialists of America, (October 7, 2023).
Maurice Isserman, “Why I Just Quit DSA,” The Nation, (October 23, 2023).
“Status of DSA National Endorsement for Rep. Ocasio-Cortez,” Democratic Socialists of America, (July 10, 2024).
“Points of Unity,” Red Star, (February 24, 2025).
“For a Fighting Anti-Zionist DSA,” Democratic Socialists of America National Convention, (August 2025).
“2025 DSA Cuba Delegation,” DSA International Committee, (October 2025).
Dan Freedman, “Were Democratic Socialists of America Always Anti-Israel?” Moment, (November 3, 2025).
“Zohran Mamdani Wins! National Political Committee Statement,” Democratic Socialists of America, (November 4, 2025).
Nolan D. McCaskill, “Mamdani’s Sweep in New York a ‘Political Earthquake’ Among Democrats,” Reuters, (June 24, 2026).
Richard Cowan and Andy Sullivan, “Who Are the Democratic Socialists of America?” Reuters, (July 7, 2026).
“Getting Our Endorsement,” NYC Democratic Socialists of America.
“Workers Deserve More,” NYC Democratic Socialists of America.
Charles C. W. Cooke, “The DSA Wants to Abolish America,” National Review, (July 27, 2026).
Photo: DSA.