New Poll: Democratic Socialism Is Now Mainstream

A national poll from Jacobin, DSA Fund, and Data for Progress finds broad support for democratic socialist leaders and left-wing policies.

Politicians like Zohran Mamdani and Bernie Sanders may be “outsiders” among the political class, but the numbers show that their policy positions reflect mainstream American opinion. (Angela Weiss / AFP via Getty Images)

A new national survey commissioned by DSA Fund and Jacobin, with support from the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, and fielded by Data for Progress (N=1,257 likely voters; MOE ±3) takes stock of where democratic socialism stands with the electorate — and what it would take to build stable, working-class majorities beyond deep-blue districts.

Among Democrats, democratic socialists enjoy significant popularity. The poll’s findings include:

Democrats prefer democratic socialism to capitalism by a 58 point margin. Socialism wins overall with likely voters under forty-five years old.
Democrats prefer left-wing political figures similar to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, and Zohran Mamdani over establishment politicians similar to Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries, and Nancy Pelosi by a 20 point margin.
- This was also true across party lines in critical voting blocs: noncollege (+9), Latinos (+30).
Candidates who identify as democratic socialists are viewed just as favorably (+69) among registered Democrats as candidates who identify only as Democrats (+67).

“These results tell a clear story: democratic socialism is now mainstream,” said DSA Fund executive director Gabe Tobias. “Far from a liability, the ‘democratic socialist’ label is now how voters recognize a leader who they can trust to fight for them. And far from fringe, DSA [Democratic Socialists of America] actually represents the majority political views of Democratic voters.”

The poll also found support for egalitarian policy positions among Republicans and independents:

70% of all respondents say that our economic system is “rigged in favor of corporations and the wealthy” and needs to be replaced; this includes 67% of independents and 58% of Republicans.
59% of respondents (and 58% of Republicans) blame landlords and banks more than government regulation for the high cost of housing.
83% of respondents agree that social work and mental health are necessary parts of a public safety budget; this includes 81% of independents and 80% of Republicans. This was true across all partisan, racial/ethnic, geographic, and class groups.
15% of Donald Trump voters prefer democratic socialism to capitalism. These voters tended to be younger and non-white.

“This poll underscores that the term ‘democratic socialism’ now communicates something very practical to American voters: the kind of economic security and fairness once associated with the New Deal tradition,” said Bhaskar Sunkara, president of the Nation magazine and founding editor of Jacobin.

The poll was conducted from August 22 to 24, 2025. It surveyed 1,257 likely voters nationwide using web panel respondents. It was conducted by Data for Progress for the DSA Fund, Jacobin magazine, and the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung.

Read the survey here. Full crosstabs here.

This post was originally published on Jacobin.