Democratic Socialist Leader: ‘Our goal is communism.’

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Contact: Henry Herrera

Telephone: +1-301-801-0608

Democratic Socialist Leader: ‘Our goal is communism.’

July 6, 2026 — Following last November’s victory of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City, democratic-socialism has gained visibility and momentum in the United States. The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is the country’s largest socialist organization, currently with over 116,000 members.

However, many Americans remain skeptical. A Pew Research Center poll released last month found that 38% of Americans dislike political leaders who identify as democratic socialists, while only 17% like them. Among Democrats, 32% view such leaders favorably, 11% view them unfavorably, and a majority (56%) say they neither like nor dislike them (1).

What is “democratic socialism”? The Democratic Socialists of America vaguely describes its philosophy as “a system where ordinary people have a real voice in our workplaces, neighborhoods, and society.” The website goes on say the DSA is working for “single-payer Medicare for All, defunding the police/refunding communities, [and] the Green New Deal.” (2)

The DSA website also declares, “We want to collectively own the key economic drivers that dominate our lives, such as energy production and transportation.” “Collectively” generally means “government-owned.”

If any doubt remains about the DSA’s long-term goals, David Jenkins, a member of DSA’s National Political Committee, has publicly stated, “Our goal is liberation. Our goal is communism.” (3)

The DSA promotes feminist ideology and programs on several fronts:

Political Platform refers to DSA as a “socialist feminist organization.” (4)
The Queer & Feminist Commission (QFC) (5)
Numerous chapter-level feminist groups (6)
Educational initiatives such as “100 Days of Socialism: Socialist-Feminism” (7)

Democratic socialists will be on the ballot in numerous localities in November, including Nithya Raman in Los Angeles; Melat Kiros (CO-1); Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI-12); Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14); Claire Valdez (NY-7); Darializa Avila Chevalier (NY-13); Chris Rabb (PA-3); and Janeese Lewis George in Washington, DC.

While the Democratic Socialists of America has faced strong criticism, only a handful of Democrats have signed the Promise to America pledge declaring, “we are capitalist, not socialist.” (8)

The future influence of the Democratic Socialists of America will likely depend on the level of opposition from mainstream Democrats, and by the response of voters in November.

SAVE – Stop Abusive and Violent Environments – is a 501(c)3 organization working to assure due process, fairness, and equal opportunities for men.

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