Democratic socialists think fatigue with mainstream could open paths in midterms

Trump threatened to "take back" D.C. if democratic socialist wins mayor's race.

When asked at the White House how he would feel if Janeese Lewis George won Tuesday's primary in her campaign to become the new mayor of Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump's response was clear.

"I wouldn't like it," Trump said. "Maybe we take back Washington and run it on a federal basis. We won't put up with it."

Lewis George, a D.C. council member, is one of several democratic socialists running for office across the country who hope fatigue with Trump and frustration with Democrats will inspire voters to consider alternatives to establishment candidates. She advocates pushing back against the Trump administration, particularly when it comes to cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). A Washington Post-Schar School poll conducted earlier this month showed Lewis George with a double-digit lead over former D.C. council member Kenyan McDuffie, a Democrat.

A Fox News poll conducted in February and March found that 38% of voters believe it would be good for the United States to move toward socialism and away from capitalism. That is up 6 percentage points from 2022 and a new record high, but similar to 36% in 2018. In the same poll, nearly half said capitalism was working "not very well" or "not at all well."

The Fox News poll found that 53% of voters under 30 said they preferred socialism to capitalism.

Emily Ekins, a researcher at the libertarian Cato Institute told ABC News that young people "want affordable health care, more affordable housing, a fair economy, where the rich aren't getting special favors from the government," but argues that young people do not actually understand what socialism is.

Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist and former restaurant owner running for governor of Wisconsin, told ABC News that she thinks people struggling with bills and economic pressure are more likely to give candidates like her a chance.

"I think we're showing there's a path," said Hong. "But you have to engage new voters, you have to bring in young voters, and you have to talk about actually wanting to change the system, because it's not working for everyday people."

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) rose to prominence in 2018 when several members of the left-wing group, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, won seats in the House running as Democrats.

Since then, DSA has faced several setbacks. Prominent democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders failed for a second time to secure the Democratic nomination for presiden