The DSA Despises the Democratic Party. So Why Are They So Involved in It?

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) have never hidden their contempt for the Democratic Party. They call it corporate-funded, imperialist, and fundamentally unreformable. So why do they remain so deeply embedded within it, running candidates in its primaries, caucusing with its members in Congress, and shaping its platform from the inside?

The answer is simple: strategy.

“We Hate the Democratic Party. We’re Here to Enact Socialism.” That blunt admission came in leaked audio from a 2021 DSA strategy session. “We’re not here to make Democrats better,” one leader declared. “We’re here to take power.”

Since its explosive growth after Bernie Sanders’ 2016 campaign, from 6,000 members to over 90,000, DSA has pursued a deliberate, two-stage plan known as the “dirty break.”

Stage 1: Use Democratic primaries, low-turnout, often uncontested in deep-blue districts, to elect socialists under the Democratic label.

Stage 2: Once enough socialists hold office, break away to form an independent workers’ party. As DSA national director Maria Svart explained in 2020: “We’re not trying to reform the Democratic Party. We’re trying to replace it.”

DSA Electoral Wins in Democratic Primaries

2018: 40+ victories (AOC, Rashida Tlaib)

2020: 101 wins (Jamaal Bowman, Cori Bush)

2025: 250+ and counting (Zohran Mamdani’s NYC mayoral primary win)

The “Trojan Horse” Tactic

In America’s winner-take-all system, third parties are electoral dead ends. Only nine non-Democratic state legislators exist nationwide outside Vermont’s Progressive Party. DSA’s response? Hijack the machine you hate. They target safe Democratic seats, mobilize volunteers, and win with tiny fractions of the electorate. Once elected, DSA members like Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Cori Bush vote with Democrats 95%+ of the time, but use their platforms to push Medicare for All, defund the police, and condemn U.S. foreign policy.

Canary Mission: “A Hostile Takeover in Progress”

The pro-Israel watchdog Canary Mission has tracked DSA’s evolution from a marginal reformist group in 1982 to what it now calls a “virulently anti-American, anti-Israel revolutionary organization.”

Their dossier is damning:

“DSA isn’t joining the Democrats,” Canary Mission warns. “It’s colonizing them.”

The Democratic Party’s Dilemma

Despite the rhetoric, top Democrats keep endorsing DSA candidates. Why? In safe districts, they’re unbeatable in generals, and their energy mobilizes young voters.But cracks are showing:

AOC lost her 2024 primary challenge (barely). Bowman was ousted by a pro-Israel moderate. Party elders like Hakeem Jeffries now openly criticize “The Squad.”

The Endgame

DSA’s own documents admit the goal: “Realign the Democratic Party to the left, then split when the time is right.” Until then, they’ll keep running in blue jerseys, while dreaming of burning the stadium down.As one DSA organizer told Jacobin magazine: “We don’t love the Democrats. We just need their ballot line. For now.”