Some ultras aren't even *that* anti-electoral. Ultra chapters run elections too, but when has a e.g. a Portland council seat ever shifted national discourse and led to a national membership bump? I applaud their success but that difference in power/perception is where the heart of the conflict lies
LA’s DSA basically abandoning Gascon was a clear message that they are not a reliable partner with a strategic vision electorally
What are you talking about?
In 2020, they had a robust door knock & table presence for him, in 2024 they did a tepid non-endorsement endorsement & I didn’t see a single canvasser. Gascon saw his margin fall in a lot of precincts where DSA had been active
This is factually untrue. We had no campaign for Gascon at any point because DSA only campaigns for socialists.
For me, smaller elections are important because doing useful things with the power of elected offices is an easy way to get a lot of people to buy into the socialist idea. Electoralism cannot and will not be the only way DSA builds itself up, but it's not something that can be compromised on either
Yeah I am in a medium sized chapter and saw our 1 elected munipal leader making things better. That is an end in and of itself that I am proud of.
I mean, the mayor of New York City is the most important municipal office in the country. There's a reason there's a big difference!
New York City is the cultural epicenter of the east coast and the most populous city in the country. Portland is the largest city in a state that banned black people from entering it when it was a territory.
I like Portland. This isn't a NYC good Portland bad post. They are both really cool places.