By Art Harman, Senior Vice President – Policy, The Conservative Caucus
“Democratic socialism” isn’t.
Under socialism, everything becomes mandatory or illegal. The entire ideology is counter to our Constitution and to the very concepts of liberty and human rights.
Yet on June 23, voters selected three openly-socialist candidates endorsed by New York City’s radical Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani in the congressional primaries.
A Stern Warning from TCC’s President
The President of The Conservative Caucus, Jim Pfaff, offered a stern warning following the results of the elections.
Communism under any name, which includes “democratic socialism,” has brought only poverty and misery to more than a billion people. We’ve seen it around the world, but few understand how bad it gets. The totalitarians disguise their goals with flowery wording to gain power at the ballot box — and with the collusion of the left-wing media.
Then they gradually strip our rights. Make people afraid to oppose the agenda items the media drums into us each day.
It’s always “for the good of society” or a pitch against “selfishness” and of course attacking “the rich,” while being financed by their own billionaires such as George Soros and Chinese resident Neville Roy Singham.
Our Founding Fathers built a nation designed to survive as a free nation for eons, but they understood we must maintain eternal vigilance against the forces of tyranny. Benjamin Franklin warned, We have “a republic, if you can keep it.”
United, we Americans can reverse the slide to socialism. The Conservative Caucus was founded to bring the power of grassroots Americans to influence Congress and educate people about the threats to our liberty. Join with us.
— JIM PFAFF, PRESIDENT, THE CONSERVATIVE CAUCUS
New York City is the financial headquarters of our nation. The showcase of our free market system and a beacon to the world of the opportunities in America. But it is being invaded by those who worship the totalitarian ideology of Communism. Sure, voters just hear tempting platitudes such as “free stuff,” “equality,” “justice” and “diversity,” but it’s not hard to find their less-publicized threats to liberty, and to vote responsibly.
However, schools and the media teach that the code words of the radical Left actually mean a paradise for all.
Given their liberal Democrat districts in New York City, these radicals will be elected in November and then sworn into Congress in January. They may lie as they take the oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely…”
Of serious note is that members of Congress are automatically allowed access to classified briefings and documents. Unlike government employees, members are allowed access without background and loyalty investigations. Many have raised concerns about such access by existing members of Congress like the Somali Rep. Ilhan Omar. Would Omar and these candidates relay classified intelligence to enemy nations or to the media; risking lives and strategies?
The extremist takeover of the “democratic” party is accelerating, so much so that radical-leftist House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries got booed loudly when seen on the TV news at Claire Valdez’s victory party in Brooklyn with chants of “You’re next! You’re next!” as he spoke about the losses of the slightly-more establishment candidates. No ‘coexist’ or ‘tolerance’ for their own party leader!
Disgraced former Congressman, Jamal Bowman — the one who pulled the fire alarm to try to prevent a Congressional vote, celebrated the election of these three socialist by shouting, “you’ll have half of congress shouting ‘free Palestine’ and F*** AIPAC”
Radical Democrats constantly call liberty-minded conservatives — and anyone that they hate — “fascists.” But note that there’s only a small technical difference between National Socialism and International Socialism. Both institute essentially identical bloody dictatorships using essentially identical Communist ideology.
Any differences between the two are only in branding and logos, just as McDonald’s and Wendy’s are essentially identical burger joints. The technical difference is whether the totalitarian state will steal businesses or just order them to comply with their orders. In the experience of the people, there’s no difference. In the U.S., technically the “democratic socialists” are therefore the actual fascists. The irony is they have no clue.
Here’s the Rogues’ Gallery That Got Elected on Tuesday
Darializa Avila Chevalier (NY-13 winner)
A campaign slogan sums up her ideology: “Tax the Rich. Abolish ICE. Free Palestine.”
She (can we assume her gender?) is a 32-year-old ‘community organizer’ (like Obama), sociologist/PhD student (CUNY), public defender investigator, and self-described “democratic socialist.” She has long protested against mass incarceration (removing dangerous criminals from society), ICE detention of illegals, and for Palestinian “liberation.” She is a recent convert to Islam.
She participated in Columbia University pro-Palestinian protests and encampments and was arrested twice while protesting against what she calls the “genocide in Gaza.”
Chevalier’s most alarming statements come from her deleted social media posts and activism tied to the “Columbia University Apartheid Divest” organization (CUAD), which she co-founded.
CUAD boasted about their goals while Chevalier was actively involved in the group:
“We are Westerners fighting for the total eradication of Western civilization. We stand in full solidarity with every movement for liberation in the Global South. Our intifada is an internationalist one…”
Their aim is for “nothing short of the total collapse of the university structure and American empire itself.”
— COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY APARTHEID DIVEST (CUAD)
Those goals alone would disqualify her taking the oath of office as a member of Congress.
Chevalier responded to her calls to “defund the police” by declaring, “F**k you. We’re gonna defund and abolish. You don’t get to water down our movements,” and clarified, “No. It means ending policing full stop. Period. No more police at all ever.” She reposted calls for “a world without borders — just like a world without prisons or police,” explicitly saying “Yes, literally, abolish the border” and that “all deportation is wrong.” Other of her posts questioned Israel’s existence, saying “Trick question — Israel doesn’t exist!,” called Joe Biden a “rapist” and “war criminal,” and described the U.S. as “a f***ing disgrace.”
Her stated goal is to “reflect Islam in the halls of Congress.” Chevalier helped lead pro-Palestinian protests and through the CUAD that she co-founded (whose accounts posted “Death to America” in 2026); she attended the October 8, 2023 pro-Hamas rally the day after the deadly attacks, and has defended her broader anti-ICE and pro-Palestine positions.
She visited the West Bank in 2014 as a Columbia student, describing it as a “deeply formative experience” that shaped her pro-Palestine activism.
Chevalier defeated the incumbent “progressive” five-term Rep. Adriano Espaillat in the primary election. From the frying pan to the fire.
Life in a country without any police at all would be extremely dangerous. But after her totalitarian revolution, expect concentration camps and secret police to eliminate all opposed to her violent revolution.
Of these three, Chevalier appears the most dangerous to our liberty and our constitutional system.
Chevalier’s Agenda by her own Words:
- “F**k you. We’re gonna defund and abolish. You don’t get to water down our movements.”
- “I forgot to get napkins so I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me.”
- “No. It means ending policing full stop. Period. No more police at all ever.”
- “A world without borders — just like a world without prisons or police — is possible, necessary, and the only moral way forward.”
- “Yes, literally, abolish the border.”
- “All deportation is wrong.”
- “Trick question — Israel doesn’t exist!”
- “This country is a f**king disgrace.”
- “I still believe that all deportations are wrong.”
- “And to subject non-citizens to both the criminal system and then the deportation system is inherently double jeopardy on the basis of where someone was born, right?”
Who bought the race?
Chevalier’s funding support included:
- Justice Democrats PAC: $380k–$845k+ in support including digital ads. This group recruited her and aligns with her “democratic socialist” platform.
- American Priorities PAC: (a newer pro-Palestinian/anti-AIPAC super PAC) spent around $500k on media buys for her; part of a broader $1M+ commitment across progressive races. This group was formed to counter AIPAC spending and has drawn donations from various Muslim business leaders and radical Democrat donors.
- Indivisible Action: (~$26k).
- NYC-DSA (Democratic Socialists for America) via its committee DSA For the Many provided heavy ground organizing, volunteer canvassing, and in-kind support. NYC-DSA endorsed Chevalier and Valdez and mobilized its ~13,000 members aggressively for them.
Brad Lander (NY-10 winner)
Brad Lander defeated incumbent Rep. Daniel Goldman by two-to-one. Goldman is Jewish, which to the anti-Semites now ascendant in the Democrat Party, is an unforgivable sin.
Lander’s record includes long-standing calls to abolish ICE, including saying “I first called for abolishing ICE in 2018,” multiple arrests during protests including at ICE facilities, and labeling Israel’s actions in Gaza as “genocide.” His history of civil disobedience arrests, advocacy to dismantle immigration enforcement, and hostile stance on Israel are emblematic of radical anti-law-enforcement and anti-Israel activism from a former high-ranking city official.
In his concession speech, Rep. Dan Goldman warned, “As history has taught us, anti-Semitic tropes and stereotypes — some of which I heard personally on this campaign — will ultimately be the undoing of our democracy if we all don’t lean in and speak out, even if it’s not politically expedient.” During the campaign, Goldman was ousted from a Brooklyn coffee shop for not being anti-Semitic. New York appears to be following the ideology of Berlin in the 1930s.
Lander’s Agenda by his Own Words:
- “I first called for abolishing ICE in 2018.”
- “Israel’s destruction of Gaza which I do consider a genocide.”
- “We can’t continue to be complicit in genocide.”
- “End US complicity in Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza.”
- “When I get to Congress, I’ll co-sponsor the Block the Bombs Act. It’s long past time to end U.S. complicity in the destruction of Gaza.”
- “I first called for abolishing ICE in 2018.”
- “As a proud Jewish New Yorker, I believe Israel’s genocide in Gaza is a desecration… [and] the Israeli occupation of Lebanon is on its way potentially to being a genocide as well.”
- Lander publicly committed to “working to defund the NYPD” and voted against the city budget for not cutting at least $1 billion from police in 2020.
Who bought the race?
Lander’s funding support included:
- American Priorities PAC: provided significant support as part of its push for Mamdani-endorsed progressive candidates critical of Israel/AIPAC.
- Working Families Party PAC: Spent about $200,000. It is funded in part by George Soros’ Democracy PAC.
Claire Valdez (NY-7 winner)
Valdez is a “democratic socialist” and union organizer with a degree in painting and art history. Her career involved service jobs at Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and Trader Joe’s; as program assistant in visual arts at Columbia University; and as a union organizer with UAW Local 2110.
She has advocated ending all U.S. aid to Israel, supported the Green New Deal and a federal jobs guarantee, called for taxing the rich aggressively, and pushed for expansive worker rights including “workplace power.”
She has been vocal in attacking Israel and AIPAC while pushing propaganda that the U.S. is complicit in what she claims is genocide in Gaza.
She participated in protests alongside other left-wing figures. Her unapologetic embrace of “democratic socialism,” calls to redirect funds away from Israel toward domestic socialist programs, and alignment with groups pushing radical labor and foreign policy changes represent a direct challenge to traditional American institutions, free enterprise, and strong alliances with Israel.
Valdez even wants to have the government take over all airlines. If you thought airline travel couldn’t be made any more miserable, wait until the government runs it. She doesn’t like that there’s different classes of seating, without knowing that the first and business classes subsidize the tourist class seat prices, allowing more to afford to fly.
Valdez’s Agenda by her own Words:
- “Tax the rich… [to] take power back from the oligarchs.”
- “We must abolish ICE at the federal level… [it is a] militarized terrorist organization that is destroying our country.”
- “I’ll fight to abolish Trump’s paramilitary immigration machine that’s terrorizing our neighbors.”
- “We’ve been writing blank checks to Israel to commit genocide in Gaza.”
- “End all weapons sales and military aid to Israel.”
- “Push to end all weapons sales and military aid to Israel and fight for Palestinian freedom.”
- “Oppose further military funding to Israel and support a comprehensive arms embargo.”
- “We will stand up to the genocide who refuse to abide by apartheid and we will use our money to improve lives here instead of destroy them abroad.”
- “Two and a half years ago, the Israeli government made it very clear that they intended to wage a fool on genocide in Gaza. Since then… that’s exactly what they did.”
- “We will continue to call for Palestinian liberation… stand up to the genocide.”
Who bought the race?
Valdez’s funding support included:
- Justice Democrats PAC: Spent on her behalf (hundreds of thousands reported across related races).
- American Priorities PAC: Spent ‘significant spending as part of the anti-AIPAC effort.’
- New Yorkers for Lower Costs: Spent $130k–$250k.
- Leaders We Deserve (David Hogg’s anti-Second Amendment group): Spent ~$175k.
- NYC-DSA (Democratic Socialists for America) via its committee DSA For the Many provided heavy ground organizing, volunteer canvassing, and in-kind support. NYC-DSA endorsed Chevalier and Valdez and mobilized its ~13,000 members aggressively for them.
Who is Voting?
What price unlimited immigration, both legal and illegal?
Pre-election polling in 2025 for Zohran Mamdani showed 62% of foreign-born New Yorkers supported him, contrasting with just 32% of American-born New Yorkers. If such polling was done on these three races, we may expect the same spread. Younger and college-indoctrinated voters strongly favored Chevalier.
Like California — and other states, New York does not make people prove their citizenship when registering to vote. There’s just a little check-box on the form that nobody will verify.
This is the language on New York and other registration forms: “Are you a citizen of the U.S.? Yes/No. If you answer No, you cannot register to vote.” Followed by an affidavit that the applicant swears they are a U.S. citizen. But these won’t be checked, and few people have ever been prosecuted. That’s why the Democrat activists can go to communities of illegals and register millions without fear.
Tell me the ‘replacement theory’ isn’t a strategy of the Left.
We’ve seen the reports of massive numbers of illegal aliens voting in California, as well as falsifying mail-in ballots and other corrupt practices to steal elections.
A Mexican group helping illegals cross our border told them, “All with Biden. Reminder to vote for President Biden when you are in the United States. We need another four years of his term.”
How about New York? NY does not automatically mail out live ballots as does California. But like California, no voter ID is required, and a limited form of same-day registration is available. Ballots can be received up to 13 days after the general election. Both states allow for weeks of counting.
We must return to the ‘gold standard’ of election integrity of years back.
That’s why we must pass the SAVE America Act for this year’s election.
The Threat to the Republic
The rise of the ‘democratic socialists’ is extremely dangerous, especially with younger and college-indoctrinated voters. In 2025, about 39% of all adult Americans have a positive view of socialism. Among Democrats, 66% have a positive view of socialism and just 42% of capitalism.
In a way, it’s not surprising. The message that socialism is wonderful and full of free stuff is drummed into all public school and college students today, and the media echoes the same ideology every single day.
The three who won the New York primaries are just the most obvious. Democrat Socialists of America endorsed 145 candidates this year, per DSA’s figures. They’ve identified radical liberal House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as too ‘moderate’ for them, and their activists shouted “you’re next!” at him. Will the current Democrat leaders — liberal as they may be — fight back before they are ousted by openly anti-American socialists?
Lenin, Castro, Hitler and other socialist dictators never commanded a majority when they seized power. These “democratic socialists” now openly talk of inciting a violent Communist revolution.
The next Democrat presidential candidate might be one of these violence-endorsing totalitarians.
The lesson is that we must rebuild an appreciation for our constitutional republic, and expose to build fear the socialists who openly express their hatred for our way of life and our liberties.
Final Words
The stakes for our liberty have never been higher.
With funding from radical billionaires and organizations as well as a friendly media, the enemies of our constitutional republic will recruit and finance more of such candidates in each election — including in state and local races. A Democrat majority in Congress would comprise a growing number of these actual enemies of liberty and our Constitution.
Were these three “democratic” socialists truly selected by “the people?” Not at all. In all three primaries, only 14–18% of registered Democrats voted for them. A small, dedicated minority can often overwhelm a great army.
The public statements by these candidates are in direct opposition to the oath they would swear as new members of Congress. The two cannot be reconciled.
What Can You Do?
- Vote for conservatives, and use your influence to get many others to register and vote.
- Use your social media to warn everyone that “democratic socialists” are actual totalitarians hiding under a sheepskin, a smile, and a ‘free stuff’ sign.
— Art Harman, Senior Vice President – Policy, The Conservative Caucus
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About the author: Art Harman is Senior Vice President – Policy at The Conservative Caucus.
About The Conservative Caucus: Founded in 1974, The Conservative Caucus is a grassroots public policy action organization. Under President Jim Pfaff, the Caucus advances free enterprise, limited government, and traditional values.
Published June 24, 2026 by The Conservative Caucus.
Peter J. Thomas is a veteran conservative political strategist and seasoned policy expert dedicated to upholding the principles of the Constitution and democracy. As a founder and the chairman of the Conservative Caucus, he has played a pivotal role in promoting and shaping the conservative agenda across the nation for over half a century.