It’s Time for Democrats to Give In to the Progressive Wing of Their Party

In 2016 the democrats and the republicans both held divisive presidential primaries featuring a large swath of political ideas. Ted Cruz, John Kasich, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and of course Donald Trump, each represented various ideological wings within their parties. The political momentum of the time told Republican voters that the samey, run of the mill, republican politics of the Bush and Obama years weren’t cutting it anymore. Donald Trump offered them something better. He told it like it was, played to the crowd, and didn’t back down. Now, twelve years later, he is the president for a second time. 

At the same time, the establishment of the Democratic Party consolidated around Hillary Clinton in 2016 and then again around Joe Biden in 2020. They failed to learn from that first 2016 republican primary and were emboldened by Biden’s victory in 2020. In both elections, they threw their weight behind moderate candidates with unexciting policies and a history of controversy and broken promises. The progressive front runner for both elections was Bernie Sanders, whose politics were far to the left compared to many of his opponents. Sanders was a popular choice among democrat and even republican voters during his campaigns, but he was never declared the democratic candidate for the general election in November. 

I remember being in High School when Joe Biden was elected. I also remember the last minute campaign led by progressive democrats where they implored other progressives to “settle for Joe” to defeat Donald Trump. It worked, but by a razor’s edge, and after the four year Biden presidency, faith in the party had dramatically decreased and in-party corruption was so blatant that any momentum for a second Biden term had been completely lost. 

Now, in 2026, I see a plethora of democrats completely missing the moment. They placate their party, who are horrified at the current Trump Administration, and instead of offering actions they offer words and compromises. Hakeem Jefferies filibustered a Trump backed tax bill for almost 9 hours and Corey Booker spoke for 25 hours, both of them breaking records for the longest speeches ever held at both the House and Senate. However, neither of them have anything material to show for it. All they did was talk. 

Aside from that, many democrat representatives have sided with their Republican colleagues  voting in favor of legislation to send aid to Israel, increase federal spending for ICE, and cut taxes for the ultra-wealthy. Now, in the year 2026, many of those old Democrats, and many new candidates, are campaigning on a platform of simply not being republicans, even as Americans, especially the voter base of the Democratic party, shift ever further to the left. 

If Democrats truly want to win back the house, senate, and eventually the presidency, they need to provide more than just platitudes and run of the mill politics. They need to support popular legislation around medicare for all, public housing, and defunding ICE. This is no longer the late 20th century, where neo-liberal ideology rewrote the playbook of the American economy. Moderate candidates simply no longer have a place in our political landscape and if the Democratic party continues to prop up such figures as Gavin Newsom or Corey Booker, they will lose.