Today Is DSA Day in the Primaries

The primary elections to be held today will be a big test of the power of the Democratic Socialists of America and of Zohran Mamdani’s growing hold on the Democratic Party. 

While primaries are being held in New York, Maryland, and Utah, the big drama is in the Congressional seats in the New York City area, where Mamdani is going up against the Establishment in head-to-head matchups. 

There are three races he has endorsed, including one open seat and two against powerful incumbents. I wrote yesterday about the far-left candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, who is taking on Rep. Adriano Espaillat, a member of the Progressive Caucus and Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. 

You would expect that a man with such credentials would have an easy ride in New York—he even used to be an illegal alien!—but he is not antisemitic enough or radical enough to satisfy Mamdani and his supporters. Chevalier is about as far-left as is humanly possible; she despises Democrats, having hurled expletives at Kamala Harris, and she supports decarceration so much that she refuses to endorse the idea of prisons for murderers. 

Mayor Zohran Mamdani calls the slate of communists running in New York the “birth of a new world.” pic.twitter.com/gE29qtfjJv

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) June 22, 2026

The other head-to-head race that Mamdani has endorsed is between incumbent Dan Goldman, who made his name by leading the push for impeaching Trump, and Brad Lander, the former NYC Comptroller. Both Lander and Goldman are Jews, but Lander is a strong opponent of Israel’s policies, while Goldman, who hates Netanyahu, still backs the Jewish state in most respects. 

Goldman looks set to lose, although one never knows, despite strong backing from his congressional colleagues and his national reputation. He is backed by Planned Parenthood, the Sierra Club, and the teachers’ union, but as a member of the Organized Crime Democrats instead of the Bolshevik Democrats, Mamdani and company see him as a great scalp to take in their war to take over the Democratic Party. 

Goldman is the likeliest scalp that Mamdani can take. The race against Espaillat is too close to call, as is the primary race for the open New York 7th Congressional District.

In the 13th Congressional District, the mayor endorsed organizer Darializa Avila Chevalier to replace Rep. Adriano Espaillat. Still, polls are mixed on who will win this race, showing that a Mamdani endorsement may not be all it’s cracked up to be. 

The same can be said of the 7th Congressional District, part of which was called “The Commie Corridor” by The New York Times in 2025. Mamdani has endorsed state Assemblymember Claire Valdez over Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. While Emerson College showed Valdez ahead of Reynoso, it was only by 2 percentage points.

All three races will be seen as tests of Mamdani’s growing influence. It will be his first major foray into national politics, pitting himself against the establishment so obviously. He took on Kathy Hochul, who was, shall we say, skeptical of Mamdani, and he won that battle. The question is, can he translate his charisma into votes for others, and help sell even the most radical politicians out there?

Whoever wins these primaries will be the next congressman in their districts. There is no chance a Republican or Independent could knock off any Democrat in the general election, even were they Joseph Stalin or Mao, who likely would get cheering crowds at their victory parties. 

Unfortunately, even if Mamdani gets smoked in two of these three races, it likely won’t hurt him, though if Goldman survives, it will certainly take some of the shine off his spotless image. Goldman is widely expected to lose, and if he survives, Mamdani will certainly look weakened. 

Tonight should be interesting. 

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