Zohran Mamdani is a democratic socialist. What does that mean? : NPR

New York has elected a democratic socialist as its next mayor.

Elected Mayor Zohran Mamdani won with a progressive platform focused on making the city more affordable with free bus service, a rent freeze, universal child care and a higher minimum wage, among other ideas.

The state assemblyman represented both the Democratic Party and the Working Families Party on the ballot. He quoted the prominent late 19th and early 20th century socialist Eugene Debs in his book. victory speech Tuesday evening. And he is a longtime member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

Its New York office played a key role in Mamdani's campaign, providing early support and a legion of volunteers for canvassing and fundraising, and raising its own profile in the process.

“WITH [Mamdani's] Since winning the primary in June, the popularity of democratic socialism has soared here and across the country,” he said. NYC-DSA tweeted after his victory in the general election. “Our unprecedented growth is a testament to our vision and our ability to inspire new hope and political activism among the working class.”

As Mamdani's campaign pushed democratic socialism further into the mainstream, it also raised questions about what a political ideology is and what it is not.

In particular, President Trump has frequently and falsely criticized communist communist ahead of the elections. Mamdani denied this characterization in June appearance on NBC Meet the pressto which he replied: “No.”

Mamdani went on to describe his brand of democratic socialism, a term that largely depends on how it is interpreted.

“When we talk about my politics, I call myself a democratic socialist, largely inspired by the words Dr. King said decades ago: “Call it democracy or call it democratic socialism. There must be a better distribution of wealth for all of God's children in this country,” he said, meaning 1961 speech Martin Luther King, Jr. “And as income inequality has fallen across the country, it has increased in New York. And ultimately, we want a city where every person can thrive.”

What is democratic socialism?

There is no universal definition of democratic socialism, although its adherents widely support government takes control of certain sectors of the economy, such as health care and utilities, to benefit the public rather than private corporations.

“We want to collectively own the key economic factors that dominate our lives, such as energy production and transportation,” the DSA says on its website.

DSA, which has been around since the 1980s, calls himself largest socialist organization in the USA. It has more than 80,000 members, organized into campuses and community chapters in all 50 states, it said.

Group its members say are socialists because they reject the international economic order supported by things like private profit, discrimination and violence “in defense of the status quo”, and instead envision a more just and humane social order “based on both democratic planning and market mechanisms”.

Democratic socialists often distance themselves from historical examples socialism and communism, which have had a largely negative connotation in the United States since the Cold War. Proponents also say that democratic socialism goes further than “social democracy”, which often implies strong welfare state operates under capitalist conditions.

“We believe that there are many directions that lead to the democratic path to socialism,” says DSA. “Our vision goes beyond the historical social democracy and relegates authoritarian views of socialism to the dustbin of history.”

Communist Party USA states that while she shares some of the values ​​of democratic socialists (such as opposing war and pushing for a higher minimum wage), she believes that this can only happen through a fundamental restructuring of society.

Many democratic socialists recognize that radical change will not happen in the short term, so they use tools such as organizing, lobbying and protests in the hope of bringing about changes to the existing system, at least for now.

“Because we are unlikely to see an immediate end to capitalism tomorrow, DSA today is fighting for reforms that will weaken the power of corporations and increase the power of workers,” he explains. We single payer Medicare for all And Green New Deal as examples.

Why is democratic socialism on the rise?

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont brought democratic socialism to the attention of many people during his 2016 presidential campaign.

A registered independent, Sanders called himself a democratic socialist. for decadesformation of ideology his position on everything from poverty to healthcare to higher education.

Sanders is not a member of the DSA. But his candidacy is attributed increase in organization membership and visibility, just in time for Trump's first presidency.

Holly Otterbein, an Axios reporter who covered the rise of socialism, told NPR A minute has passed Earlier this week, she noted the biggest increase in DSA membership since Trump's 2016 victory.

“When I talked to people who became DSA members or DSA leaders, they felt like the 2016 election kind of discredited the Democratic Party in their eyes,” she said.

Many young voters steel dissatisfied with the Democratic Party, a trend that has continued through the COVID-19 pandemic, economic turmoil and now Trump's second term. All this fueled the democratic socialist movement.

“Socialism is a constant talking point for people who still can't find a way out of the economic instability that their generation and previous generations couldn't get out of,” said Lex McMenamin, head of politics at Teen Vogue. A minute has passed.

A Gallup poll released found in September that about two-thirds of Democrats view socialism favorably, up from 50% in 2010, although Americans overall continue to view capitalism more favorably.

What could Mamdani's victory mean for the movement?

Recent years have seen elections for DSA members, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. and Rashida Tlaib, Democrat of Michigan.

Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez, as well as the NYC-DSA, endorsed Mamdani ahead of the June primary and led rallies with him in the following months.

After Mamdani's victory on Tuesday, an NBC reporter asked Ocasio-Cortez how she would define democratic socialism.

“To me, it's a radical idea that workers have economic rights,” she said, citing housing, decent wages, health care and child care as examples.

Political scientists warned that Mamdani's approach may not be winning plan for Democratic Socialist candidates running outside New York City, where registered Democrats significantly outnumber Republicans. But supporters see lessons in his success.

“He had to defeat the Republican and the old guard of the Democratic Party at the same time,” Ocasio-Cortez told CNNreferring to Curtis Sliwa and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. “And he still won a landslide victory.

“And I think it sends a message that the Democratic Party cannot last long by denying the future, by trying to undermine our youth, by trying to undermine the next generation of diverse and future Democrats that … our actual electorate and voters support.”

The New York DSA is already touting Mamdani's victory in recruitment effortscalling it just the beginning. It is noteworthy that Mamdani emphasized during his election campaign that its platform is different compared to the DSA, and has taken a more moderate stance on issues such as the removal of minor offenses and police protection.

Teen Vogue's McMenamin says Mamdani's mayoral tenure could change what socialism means to people, depending on how he governs.

“I think people will really want to talk about socialism if some of these policy changes actually start to take effect,” McMenamim adds. “And so what could happen in New York next year could lead to big changes for people in all 50 states.”