The 2026 midterm election showed that leftists like Michigan Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed — and even candidates who have been affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America — can win in competitive areas of the country, under the right circumstances.

But it also showed the danger of nominating candidates like them.

Many of them won, but they also often ran worse than other Democrats — and even further behind some of the party’s most moderate candidates.

The results clearly illustrate that nominating more moderate candidates remains the most fruitful path to winning swing seats and states. And they suggest candidates like El-Sayed could cost Democrats in less-wavey elections.

  • rumimevlevi@sh.itjust.works
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    8 hours ago

    More progressives like el sayed is rhr only path to not have another Trump again. This article is pure bullshit. The real extremists are the so called centrists not the left

  • yonderbarn@lazysoci.alOP
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    8 hours ago

    Does the author realize that everyone ran on Mamdani’s affordability platform? Otherwise, they would have had nothing to offer other than being not Trump.

    • TheDemonBuer@lemmy.world
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      7 hours ago

      Does the author realize that everyone ran on Mamdani’s affordability platform?

      And wisely so. To their credit, moderates realized it was the right campaign strategy, so they embraced it. However, it’s hard to say how many of them actually give a shit about affordability. I think it’s likely at least some Democrats only put on the mask of an economic populist, and as soon as it’s politically convenient, the mask will come off. Which is what the moderate Dem voters are counting on. They have nothing but disdain for economic populism, but they were willing to pretend like they loved it to win back power.

  • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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    8 hours ago

    If this is a valid observation, how much of it is do with lack of instiutional support, both direct lack of support (Jackson) and damning-with-faint-praise (El-Sayed)? On top of establishment media making anyone’s leftists policies the issue of discussion while completely ignoring anything the Republican oppponent’s ever said or done?

    That these candidates win against these currents leads me to the exact oppossite conclusion: these are the candidates that can win, and with less money.

    Speaking of money, how about seeing how much money those better-performing moderates raised to continue the useless policies that will lead to the next and final fascist take over of the US?

  • DagwoodIII@piefed.social
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    7 hours ago

    Remember when Obama won two terms and people were talking about the end of racism?

    Voters are going to vote their wallets every time.

  • SippyCup@lemmy.world
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    7 hours ago

    Democrats determined to continue to lose, even after sweeping victory. More at 11.