Around 200 DSA-endorsed candidates and ballot measures are on the ballot Nov. 3, testing whether insurgent primary victors can convert progressive momentum into seats in Congress and local office.
This midterm election season has brought fresh attention to the left wing of the Democratic Party, though only a handful of candidates running for Congress formally align with the Democratic Socialists of America, according to reporting from The Associated Press. Most of these candidates emerged from strong Democratic primary fights after defeating seasoned incumbents.
Primary Upsets in New York, Colorado, and Michigan
Several progressive challengers ousted long-serving establishment figures during primary voting. In New York’s upper Manhattan and Bronx district, community organizer Darializa Avila Chevalier secured an upset victory over longtime Rep. Adriano Espaillat. Chevalier centered her campaign on the argument that existing government leadership had abandoned working-class voters.
I think folks are really tired of politics that seems more beholden to donors.
Chevalier, via The Associated Press
In Colorado, first-time candidate Melat Kiros won a primary victory against 30-year incumbent Rep. Diana DeGette in the Denver area. Meanwhile, in a Detroit-area district, Donavan McKinney overcame a spending disadvantage to unseat Rep. Shri Thanedar.
McKinney and Rabb Challenge Democratic Party Priorities
McKinney emphasized grassroots policy goals during his campaign events, declaring that the Democratic Party faces a fundamental choice.
No longer can our party continue to serve two masters.
Donavan McKinney
In Pennsylvania, state lawmaker Chris Rabb won a four-way primary in a heavily Democratic Philadelphia district. Highlighting how campaign financing corrupts politics, Rabb told reporters that the Democratic Party pays closer attention to its financial donors than to actual voters.
November 3 Votes Determine Size of Socialist Bloc
The upcoming vote will determine the size of the democratic socialist bloc in the U.S. In New York, state lawmaker Claire Valdez defeated the handpicked successor to retiring Rep. Nydia Velazquez in a Brooklyn and Queens district.
At the local level, Los Angeles DSA, the organization’s second-largest chapter, is contesting citywide offices and council seats. As ballots open on November 3, national organizations are tracking results.
The 120th Congress will almost certainly seat seven DSA endorsees: incumbents Rashida Tlaib in Metro Detroit and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York City, alongside newcomers Chris Rabb in Philadelphia, Melat Kiros in Denver, Donavan McKinney in Metro Detroit, Darializa Avila-Chevalier in New York City, and Claire Valdez in New York City. Whether Democrats or Republicans claim the House majority during the final two years of President Donald Trump’s term, these progressive newcomers infuse the Democratic Party with fresh momentum while simultaneously introducing potential hurdles for its leadership. Although the GOP has attempted to sound alarms regarding socialism, this rhetoric may no longer carry its former weight, especially amongst Democrats.
Darializa Avila Chevalier was a community organizer and a field staffer for Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral campaign before landing her upset victory in upper Manhattan and the Bronx. A newcomer to politics who formally became a democratic socialist last year, Chevalier argued that Congress needs fresh faces to challenge the status quo. She previously helped organize demonstrations in solidarity with Palestinians at Columbia University and built her entire platform around opposing Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza. Last month, she was taken into custody during a Manhattan demonstration directed against the United Nations General Assembly address given by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Melat Kiros, the Colorado newcomer, is a lawyer turned doctoral student. The 29-year-old is an immigrant from Ethiopia whose family relocated to Colorado after she was born. Before launching her congressional campaign, she practiced law in New York City, having earned her undergraduate degree in political science and economics from Maryland’s Washington College alongside her juris doctor from the University of Notre Dame. Taking to a stage under a sign that read Power to the People,
Kiros laid out her plans in a victory speech focused on taking the fight to Donald Trump and the oligarchy, abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and passing a Medicare for All health care subsidy.
Donavan McKinney has described himself as a democratic socialist and was endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America. He ran on progressive issues with an emphasis on reforming utility costs, backing Medicare for All, and getting money out of politics. He supported abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, imposing a moratorium on data centers, passing a Medicare for All health care subsidy, creating new government-run grocery stores to wipe out food deserts, and expanding federal minimum wage laws to eliminate a lower tipped minimum wage and cover independent contractors such as gig workers.
As one of the most outspoken and fiercely progressive figures in the Pennsylvania state House of Representatives, Chris Rabb has completed a decade of service in the chamber while employing a combative political approach. Possessing an Ivy League education, Rabb has stated that he joined the Democratic Socialists of America’s Philadelphia chapter in 2026, though his roots extend across a broad network of progressive movements and organizations. Ending U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, placing a temporary halt on data centers, and enacting a Medicare for All healthcare subsidy were among the initiatives he backed.
Claire Valdez is a state lawmaker and part of a slate of Mamdani-backed progressives. In Michigan, climate activist and former DSA member William Lawrence is looking to defeat GOP Rep. Tom Barrett in one of the nation’s most competitive seats.