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👋 Welcome back, comrades. In this issue: Workers are walking out, landlords are getting checked, and two socialist-aligned city council bids just cleared primaries. Plus: DSA splits over AOC and a populist wave in Maine. Links are live. Tap away.
🔦 Socialist Spotlight
Maine’s insurgent: Graham Platner surges
Progressive oyster farmer turned candidate shakes up the U.S. Senate race. Platner’s campaign has pulled in veterans of Mamdani’s NYC mayoral team and just co-hosted a Labor Day rally with national allies. He’s framing the contest on health care, housing, and climate justice.
📎Maine Public | Politico
Detroit’s D7: Denzel McCampbell tops the primary
Working Families Party + Detroit DSA coalition carries McCampbell into November against State Rep. Karen Whitsett.
📎Ballotpedia | Working Families Party | Axios Detroit
📢 Policy Focus
UAW vs. GE Aerospace
Over 600 UAW members at GE Aerospace plants in Ohio & Kentucky walked off the job on August 28. The union cites broken promises on healthcare, time off, and job security.
📎Reuters | UAW update
WA AG fines landlords for rent‑cap violations
Washington’s new rent stabilization law is active: eight landlords were fined in early August for illegal rent hikes, and tenants got refunds.
📎Washington State Standard | WA Attorney General
Global Model: Seattle’s Permanent Social Housing — Through a new payroll tax on ultra-high earners, Seattle is funding social housing that remains permanently affordable, offering a radical template for local government-led solutions.
📎Good good good
🧠 Thought of the Week
The lesson of the week: when workers strike and tenants organize, “electability” starts to look a lot like accountability. Don’t wait for parties to catch up — build power, then make them chase it.
📍Local Chapter News
Minneapolis: State DFL revokes Omar Fateh’s mayoral endorsement after convention irregularities; left organizers double down on field.
📎Sahan Journal | Star Tribune explainer
Jersey City: Ward D candidate and DSA member Jake Ephros turns his HQ into a community space — organizing nights, tenant clinics, the works.
📎Jake for JC
Atlanta DSA: The newly formed Feminist Socialist (FemSoc) caucus launched with its first organizing meeting (Aug 20), and the entire membership also just wrapped a massive general meeting on Aug 23. Momentum’s building.
📎Atlanta DSA Instagram posts
NYC DSA: Riding the wave of Zohran Mamdani’s primary win, the NYC chapter is rolling out “A Million Doors to a Million Votes” — a door-knocking plan to expand democratic-socialist turnout ahead of November.
📎DSA Democratic Left article
⚠️ Watchdog Corner
DSA splits over its posture toward AOC
At the recent national convention in Chicago, the Democratic Socialists of America faced a flashpoint: a proposed resolution to censure Rep. Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez for perceived “tacit support for Zionism” was tabled for a future vote. The controversy highlights internal friction within DSA as they navigate ideological purity and organizational unity.
📎City and State NY
🗳️ Candidate Roster (2025)
DSA & progressive campaigns to watch — Not a complete list. More can be found here
Katie Wilson — Mayor of Seattle (Progressive) — wilsonforseattle.com
Grassroots transit organizer; strong base among renters and labor, advanced past the August primary.
Graham Platner — U.S. Senate, Maine (Progressive) grahamforsenate.com
Labor Day rally with Bernie Sanders; ad made by a top Mamdani strategist; campaign is health care & housing heavy.
Peggy Flanagan — U.S. Senate, Minnesota (Progressive) peggyflanagan.com
Lieutenant Governor running for Senate; early support includes Sen. Elizabeth Warren and key MN labor.
Omar Fateh — Mayor of Minneapolis (DSA) — fatehformayor.com
DFL endorsement revoked after convention irregularities; race continues with rent control front and center.
Kelsea Bond — Atlanta City Council, District 2 (DSA) — kelseabond.com
Running to be Atlanta’s first socialist councilmember; platform centers affordable housing, transit, and a city Green New Deal.
Emily Berge — U.S. House, WI‑03 (Progressive) — bergeforcongress.com
Eau Claire councilmember in a competitive open seat; touts union jobs & rural investment.
Abdul El‑Sayed — U.S. Senate, Michigan (Progressive) abdulformichigan.com
Launched with heavy progressive enthusiasm and national figures; health justice message resonates.
Junaid Ahmed — U.S. House, IL‑08 (Progressive) — junaidforus.com
Open seat scramble; six‑figure Q2; active field program in Schaumburg/Elgin suburbs.
Alex Hardy — U.S. House, IN‑06 (Progressive) — partyhardy.us
Army veteran running in red turf; leaning into labor rights and veterans’ care.
Jackson Franklin — U.S. House, IN‑05 (Progressive)jacksonfranklinforcongress.com
Organizing early in a suburban‑exurban district; watch for union/abortion‑rights crossovers.
Kshama Sawant — U.S. House, WA‑09 (DSA/RWP) — kshamasawant.org
Former Seattle councilmember eyeing a federal platform on labor rights and renters’ power.
Jake Ephros — Jersey City Council, Ward D (DSA) — jakeforjc.com
Community development attorney; mutual aid roots; Ward D is winnable with turnout.
Willie Burnley Jr. — Mayor of Somerville, MA (DSA) willieforsomerville.com
Organizing a renters‑first, climate‑jobs program; strong chapter infrastructure.
Oliver Larkin — U.S. House, FL‑23 (Progressive) — oliverforcongress.com
Long‑shot in a deep‑blue seat; citing AOC & Mamdani as models; ballot access confirmed.
Kat Abughazaleh — U.S. House, IL‑09 (Progressive) — katforillinois.com
Media watchdog turned candidate; building small‑dollar base in a safe D seat.
Zohran Mamdani — Mayor of NYC (DSA) — zohranfornyc.com
📚 What to Read (Books & Theory)
Why You Should Be a Socialist — Nathan J. Robinson → Macmillan
A sharp primer dismantling myths about socialism with clarity and wit.
Hammer and Hoe — Robin D. G. Kelley → UNC Press
A history of Black communists in the Deep South organizing through the Great Depression and WWII.
The French Crisis: Organic or Conjunctural? — Nathan Sperber → New Left Review
A sharp analysis of France’s political and economic upheavals in a global context.
🎵 Socialism in Culture
“Song of the week: Neil Young — “Big Crime” (live debut, Aug 29, 2025).
A veteran protest singer drops a blunt anti-authoritarian broadside. Good reminder: art can punch up.
🔊 YouTube
📨 That’s it for this issue.
Forward it to a friend — Capital can buy billboards, but solidarity paints the town red for free.
Stay sharp. Stay grounded. Stay on the left edge—together.