Join the United Front for a Clean Break in DSA

Dump the Democrats — Build a Workers’ Party

Just Break Already, Labor Militant, & ISA-R

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is now the largest socialist organization in U.S. history, with more than 120,000 members. More than 250 DSA members hold elected office around the country, including two members of Congress and the mayor of the nation’s largest city, NYC. Many more hold elected union positions, from shop stewards to Executive Boards, including the President of the Vermont AFL-CIO. DSA is now bigger numerically than the Socialist Party of America was at the start of 1912, on the eve of Eugene Debs’ historic presidential campaign that year.

Despite this, the DSA is caught in a trap: It has bound itself to the Democratic Party. This will not end well. The DSA proudly portrays socialism as a rose. But this rose will not grow, much less bloom, in the barren ground and darkness of one of U.S. imperialism’s reactionary parties. Socialism will only ever take root through the mobilization of the working class under its own banner. Every DSA member who wants to build a powerful socialist movement should join together in a united front for a clean break from the Democrats.

The Democratic Party Cancer

A decade ago, DSA leaders sold members on the idea of a “dirty break” — that socialists could use the Democratic Party tactically, while taking steps towards building a party of our own. DSA is now 15 times bigger than it was in 2016. It has grown from 26 chapters to 196 chapters. Yet it is no closer to launching a new party than it was ten years ago. In fact, it has become even further entrenched inside the Democratic Party.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DSA’s most prominent member, has become a consistent tool of U.S. capitalism and imperialism. She voted to break a railroad strike in 2022 and voted against an amendment to cut $500 million in military aid to Israel. In 2024, she spoke at the Democratic National Convention, telling the world that Kamala Harris was “working tirelessly to secure a ceasefire.” She endorsed both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris after they sent tens of billions to fund the genocide. She has already endorsed AIPAC-backed Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker of the House in 2026, if the Democrats take back the House in the midterms. Still, NYC-DSA voted overwhelmingly to endorse AOC’s re-election campaign in 2026.

Zohran Mamdani is following in AOC’s footsteps. One of his first acts as Mayor was to re-appoint Zionist police chief Jessica Tisch, the billionaire heiress who sent NYPD to crush the anti-genocide protests at Columbia University in 2024. Mamdani endorsed Hakeem Jeffries, backtracked his support for Palestine, and worked to water down the “No More 24” bill to keep it from outlawing inhumane 24-hour shifts for homecare workers. He endorsed NY Governor Kathy Hochul while she was herding scabs to break the NYSNA nurses strike in New York City. Rather than fight against these betrayals, DSA has mostly gone along with them.

There has been a wave of triumphalism over the victories of DSA Democrats Chris Rabb, Claire Valdez, Darializa Avila Chevalier, and Melat Kiros in congressional primaries in Pennsylvania, New York, and Colorado. But DSA hasn’t been willing to hold AOC and Mamdani accountable. How will these Democrats be any different? 

In a sign of things to come, Chevalier has already apologized for tweeting “Fuck Kamala Harris” during the 2024 election. When asked about it during a primary debate, she responded, “I sincerely apologize...and I voted for [Harris].”

Support Independent Socialist Candidates

Meanwhile, DSA has almost entirely ignored independent socialist campaigns in multiple states. In Washington, Kshama Sawant (a DSA member who was elected four times to the Seattle City Council) ran an independent socialist campaign for Congress, which raised over $700,000 from 6,000 donors in all 50 states. In New York, Andre Easton collected 10,000 signatures in just 13 days for his independent socialist campaign. In Ohio, Greg Levy collected 14,000 signatures for his independent campaign for Senate.

In Indiana, a new Socialist Party has been launched, with the support of Jesse Brown, a DSA city councilmember from Indianapolis. The party was launched following an assault on socialists inside the Indiana Democratic Party: Brown was expelled from the Democratic Party caucus on the Indianapolis City Council for opposing cuts to public school funding, and over 100 activists were banned from running in internal party elections. The Socialist Party of Indiana is running an independent socialist, Ben Davis, for State House and has secured his place on the ballot. 

DSA nationally hasn’t backed any of these campaigns. Central Indiana DSA has refused to support the Socialist Party of Indiana, and a faction maneuvered to expel Jesse Brown from the organization. In California, DSA supported billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer over independent socialist Ramsey Robinson. Seattle DSA voted to shut down debate on the question of endorsing Kshama Sawant.

There are a few bright spots. In Rhode Island, Brittany Kubicek is running an independent campaign for State House on a program of free healthcare, a $30 minimum wage, and building a working-class party. Rhode Island DSA passed a resolution banning the endorsement of Democrats and requiring DSA candidates to run as independent socialists. Greater Lafayette DSA has endorsed Ben Davis’ campaign with the Socialist Party of Indiana. Akron DSA endorsed Greg Levy’s independent Senate campaign in Ohio. A minority of DSA members fought against the endorsement of AOC, and for DSA to endorse Kshama Sawant. But these examples are few and far between.

The DSA “left” is in shambles. Reform and Revolution, widely considered one of the most 
“left-wing” caucuses in DSA, failed to call for a “NO” vote on re-endorsing AOC. Instead, they suggest that DSA should offer “critical support” and try to “extract meaningful concessions” from her. But how do you extract concessions from a strikebreaker? By fighting them! Not endorsing them. The “Marxist Unity Group” was one of the DSA caucuses most staunchly opposed to endorsing Kshama Sawant in Seattle, and also helped defeat a resolution to support the Socialist Party of Indiana. This is not what a “transition towards independent campaigns” looks like.

The DSA “left” has taken an approach of “unity at all costs” with the DSA right. The result has been a disaster for independent socialist politics.

The Democratic Party is a capitalist and imperialist party. It is also an anemic opposition to Trump that has retreated on nearly every social issue, leaving immigrants and black and trans people to hang. Congressional Democrats are deeply unpopular, and workers are fed up with liberalism. Socialists aren’t “building power” inside the Democratic Party. They’re damaging the socialist movement and breathing life into a genocidal party.

What We Fight For

Socialists need to draw a line in the sand. We need a clean break from the Democratic Party, and we need a socialist party with revolutionary leadership.

That’s why we are coming together to launch United Front for a Clean Break in DSA. We are united on these principles:

• Dump the Democrats — No endorsements, donations, or communications in support of Democratic Party politicians. No support for any candidate who is registered as a Democrat, runs on the Democratic Party ballot line, holds positions within the Democratic Party or contracts with Democratic Party consultants, PR firms, or the Democratic Party itself.
• Elect Independent Socialists  — Launch an ambitious campaign to elect independent socialist candidates nationwide. Support, however critically, existing independent socialist campaigns.
• Expel the DSA Democrats — Ban all Democratic Party officials and politicians from membership in DSA. Require every elected DSA Democrat to renounce their Democratic Party affiliation and pledge to run as an independent or Socialist candidate in their next election, or be expelled and un-endorsed.
• Build a Workers’ Party — Support every step towards an independent socialist party, while engaging in open debate over differences. Build united fronts between DSA and the non-DSA left. Build socialist caucuses in the unions to connect the political and economic struggle, and fight to break the control of the union bureaucracy. End labor’s support for the Democratic Party. Build a workers’ party.

Join us! If you support a clean break from the Democratic Party, reach out to us at cleanbreakDSA@gmail.com.

In solidarity, 
– Labor Militant 
– Just Break Already (JBA) 
– International Socialist Alternative (revolutionary)