Chicago's Democratic Socialists on Brink of Transforming City's Politics

By Eric Lutz, Guardian UK

22 March 19

Six Democratic socialists may join city council this year, reflecting the progressive momentum in national politics

emocratic socialist Rossana Rodriguez never thought she would run for office, let alone win.

But the Chicago educator and community activist may be poised to do just that after forcing a runoff in her 33rd ward aldermanic race against incumbent Deb Mell last month, making her one of six democratic socialists who could potentially join city council this year.

That shock number of openly declared socialists set to join Chicago politics comes at a time when socialism is increasingly visible in national US politics, led by the socialist senator Bernie Sanders running for president and socialist New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez becoming one the most high-profile politicians in the House of Representatives.

But the trend is happening at a local level, too, with the emergence of socialists in Chicago politics a reflection of the progressive momentum Rodriguez and other socialist candidates say could “transform” the way this city operates.

“What we’re advocating for is for people to just be able to have decent lives. That shouldn’t be too much to ask. We need to be able to imagine that. We need to be able to imagine what good lives look like,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez won more votes in the February election than Mell, a former Illinois state representative, and is now one of four members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) vying for a city council seat in the 2 April runoff, along with Andre Vasquez, Byron Sigcho-Lopez and Jeanette Taylor.

Two other Democratic Socialists of America members, Carlos Ramirez-Rosa and Daniel La Spata, have already won seats outright.

The democratic socialists say their strong showing in Chicago’s election last month is partly a reaction to its entrenched machine politics, along with policies that progressives say have prioritized the wealthy over the interests of black, brown and working-class residents.

“Working-class Chicagoans have been shut out [of city politics],” Lucie Macias, co-chair of Chicago’s DSA chapter, said. “But people are realizing this is not the way it should be and that we can actually make change.”

For Rodriguez, that means both pushing to transform the culture of the city government and working to “amplify” the voices of those working within the communities.

“We are definitely trying to go in a different direction,” Rodriguez said.

That could mean building broad coalitions beyond the DSA to get things done for Chicagoans who feel shut out of the city’s political ruling class.

“In Chicago, people are very familiar with the political machine,” said Vasquez, who is seeking to upset the North Side’s 40th ward incumbent Patrick O’Connor in the April runoff . “They feel victimized by it, but they feel they can’t do anything about it because it’s so powerful. I think they are really aching for change.”

To do that, Vasquez said, he and other DSA members will have to band together with others seeking to “challenge the status quo”.

That could mean not only finding common ground with other progressives, but also more moderate and Republican-leaning members of the city council.

“My job now moving forward is to really build the broad coalitions that it’s going to take to win on these issues,” said La Spata, who defeated incumbent Joe Moreno in February in the race to represent the first ward on the near-north-west side.

Of course, democratic socialists probably have challenges ahead both nationally and in Chicago. While polls suggest many younger Americans are embracing socialism, the term still seems to carry baggage even among some progressives, such as Elizabeth Warren, who has eagerly emphasized that she does not consider herself a democratic socialist, despite her populist economic agenda.

Indeed, Donald Trump has sought to weaponize the term in his attacks on Democrats, saying during his State of the Union address last month that “America will never be a socialist country”.

But Chicago also has a history of radical politics, and DSA members hope that the momentum in this year’s elections here is the start of a culture shift and that the movement will continue to grow if they can deliver results.

“Our message is resonating with people,” Rodriguez said. “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us, but I do think there’s a way forward. I think more people are becoming aware of their own power.”