Socialist wave goes coast-to-coast as historic wins shake up the 2025 mayoral elections
In a historic turn of events, the 2025 elections have marked a significant victory for the socialist movement in the United States, with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) achieving their most substantial electoral success to date. New Yorkers elected Zohran Mamdani as their mayor, while Seattle’s voters also embraced a socialist agenda by electing Katie Wilson. This shift comes on the heels of a year filled with political mobilization led by prominent figures like Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who rallied the Democratic base with their “Fighting Oligarchy” tour. The DSA celebrated Mamdani’s victory, declaring it a triumph of the working class over corporate interests and the entrenched Democratic Party establishment.
Both Mamdani and Wilson, who are the first millennial mayors of their respective cities, campaigned on bold progressive platforms that emphasize affordability and community empowerment. Their proposals include universal childcare, city-run grocery stores, and a commitment to housing stability, all funded through increased taxation on the wealthy. Mamdani’s victory speech resonated with a message of inclusivity, emphasizing New York’s identity as a city built by immigrants. He also made it clear that his administration would resist the regressive policies of the Trump administration, particularly in light of the former president’s threats to cut federal funding to New York City. Meanwhile, Wilson echoed similar sentiments in Seattle, advocating for a political landscape free from corporate PAC influence and focused on delivering for working families.
While the socialist wave gained momentum in coastal cities, the Midwest saw a different outcome. In Minneapolis, incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey secured re-election against state Senator Omar Fateh, a DSA-endorsed candidate who sought to bring a socialist perspective to local governance. Despite the enthusiasm for socialist ideals in New York and Seattle, Fateh’s campaign struggled to resonate with voters in the same way. As the DSA and other progressive organizations look ahead to the 2026 midterm elections, the impact of these victories on the broader political landscape remains to be seen. The elections have sparked discussions about the sustainability of socialist momentum in American politics, as candidates like Mamdani and Wilson pave the way for a new generation of leaders advocating for systemic change.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3_f2J031mw
Socialism was on the ballot in 2025, and the Democratic Socialists of America landed their biggest ballot victory yet when New Yorkers elected
Zohran Mamdani
to lead the nation’s largest city.
The year began with Sen.
Bernie Sanders
, I-Vt., and Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
, D-N.Y., firing up Democrats on the “Fighting Oligarchy” tour after bruising losses last year. It ends with two decisive victories for the socialist movement, with Mamdani in New York City and self-described socialist Katie Wilson in Seattle, Washington.
“Through Zohran’s victory, the people defeated the oligarchy; the working class defeated major corporations; Democratic Socialism defeated the Democratic Party status quo,” the DSA
said in a statement
as Mamdani declared victory.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell conceded to Wilson on Thursday in a tight race that took more than a week to determine the winner, handing power to the party’s left-flank in the West Coast city.
NYC VOTERS EMBRACE DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM AS AOC, SANDERS STUMP FOR MAMDANI
Mamdani congratulated the fellow socialist in a post Friday morning.
INCUMBENT SEATTLE MAYOR CONCEDES TO MAMDANI-STYLE ‘SOCIALIST’ WHO TAPPED HER PARENTS FOR MONEY WHILE RUNNING
”
Seattle voters made their voices heard
: they want a new kind of politics — one that rejects corporate PAC money and delivers for working people. From one Mayor-elect to another, wishing you the best. Seattle is in great hands,” Mamdani said.
Both candidates have made history as their cities’ first millennial mayors. Running on
affordability agendas
, they built their campaigns around bold progressive ideas, from universal childcare to city-run grocery stores, funded by a tax hike on the wealthy.
“I want everyone in this great city of ours to have a roof over their head,” Wilson said Thursday. “I want universal child care and free K through 8 summer care. I want world-class mass transit … great, safe public spaces where kids can run around without abandon, stable, affordable housing for renters, social housing and much more land and wealth to be owned and stewarded by communities instead of by corporations.”
Both socialists have pledged to “Trump proof” their cities as President
Donald Trump’s
sweeping, second-term agenda loomed large over 2025 mayoral and gubernatorial races.
Trump has already deployed the National Guard to a handful of U.S. cities to combat crime and enforce illegal immigrant deportation efforts, and he vowed to cut federal funding to New York City if Mamdani won.
WILL ELECTION DAY 2025 BE REMEMBERED AS THE RISE OF THE SOCIALISTS?
“New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants, and as of tonight, led by an immigrant,”
Mamdani said during his victory speech
last week. “So hear me, President Trump, when I say this: To get any of us, you will have to get through all of us.”
At Mamdani’s election night party at the Brooklyn Paramount theater, supporters chanted “D-S-A” throughout the night. DSA leaders also joined Mamdani’s high-profile “New York is not for sale” rally with Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez ahead of Election Day.Â
Gov.
Kathy Hochul
, D-N.Y., a more moderate Democrat, met a cooler reception at Forest Hills Stadium as Mamdani’s supporters broke into chants of “Tax the rich!” as she spoke.
Mamdani can’t deliver on his signature campaign promises without Hochul’s approval to raise taxes.
As Mamdani and Wilson seek to actualize their ambitious policy agendas in two coastal cities, a socialist candidate in the Midwest wasn’t so successful this election cycle.
Jacob Frey won re-election as
mayor of Minneapolis
last week, securing his third term.
SQUAD 2.0: MEET AMERICA’S NEXT WAVE OF RADICAL DEMOCRATS SHAPING THE PARTY’S FUTURE
The election was officially nonpartisan, though Frey chose to include the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party label on his ballot line. He defeated a large field that included state Sen. Omar Fateh, a
socialist endorsed by the DSA
.
Fateh made waves on the national political stage this year, drawing comparisons to Mamdani’s mayoral campaign in New York City afterÂ
The Minnesota Star Tribune
 dubbed him the “Mamdani of Minneapolis.”
The 35-year-old son of Somali immigrants who became the first Somali-American elected to the
Minnesota state Senate
in 2020 challenged incumbent Frey head-on this year, criticizing the comparatively moderate Democrat for failing to “meet the needs of our changing society.”
While socialist slogans resonated in Seattle and New York City, Fateh’s message of change wasn’t enough to carry him across the finish line.
With a new wave of progressive candidates already eyeing the
2026 midterm elections
, the verdict is still out on whether the socialist momentum will last.
Fox News Digital reached out to the DSA for clarification about their support for Wilson’s campaign.
