Democratic voters want to reset the US relationship with Israel
In the long arc of American political realignment, Tuesday's New York primaries mark a meaningful inflection point: a new generation of democratic socialists, amplified by the mayoralty of Zohran Mamdani, unseated two sitting House members and demonstrated that dissent over Gaza, Wall Street, and party orthodoxy has moved from the margins to the mainstream. The results are less a sudden rupture than the visible crest of a wave that has been building in large liberal cities — a reckoning with what the Democratic Party is, and what a younger electorate insists it must become.
- NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani endorsed three congressional candidates in a single primary night and won all three, including two upsets against sitting House members — a show of force that few would have predicted even months ago.
- Brad Lander's defeat of incumbent Dan Goldman in NY-10 turned on Gaza, campaign finance, and a pointed argument that his party had begun conflating criticism of Israeli policy with antisemitism — a charge that cut in multiple directions at once.
- Darializa Avila Chevalier survived a turbulent campaign in NY-13 — including surfaced posts questioning Israel's right to exist and support for abolishing police and borders — to defeat incumbent Adriano Espaillat, directly defying House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
- The victories are not isolated: democratic socialist wins in DC and Los Angeles, and a looming primary challenge in Colorado, suggest the establishment is facing a coordinated and expanding insurgency rather than a local anomaly.
- Political dynasties are faltering alongside incumbents — JFK's grandson Jack Schlossberg finished a distant third in NY-12, echoing a pattern in which famous names are proving insufficient currency in 2026.
On a Tuesday night in June, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani went three for three in congressional primary endorsements, with two of his backed candidates defeating sitting House members. The results felt less like a single election night and more like a verdict on the Democratic Party's direction — and on how much power has quietly accumulated in the hands of a new democratic socialist movement rooted in large, liberal cities.
The marquee upset belonged to Brad Lander, who defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman in New York's 10th District. Lander, who is Jewish, placed the Israel-Gaza conflict at the center of his campaign, condemning Israel's military conduct while also warning his own party against conflating criticism of Israeli government policy with antisemitism. In his victory speech, he pledged to withhold votes for additional military aid to Israel and called on Democrats to reject PAC funding from crypto, Wall Street, and AIPAC. He was endorsed by Mamdani, Elizabeth Warren, and Bernie Sanders.
In the 13th District, 32-year-old public defender investigator and doctoral student Darializa Avila Chevalier defeated incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat despite a turbulent stretch in which deleted social media posts — expressing support for abolishing police, prisons, and borders, and questioning Israel's right to exist — threatened to derail her. Her win was a direct rebuke to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who had backed Espaillat, and crystallized the fault lines fracturing the party over Gaza, affordability, and campaign strategy.
Elsewhere, the night offered additional texture. In NY-12, State Assemblymember Micah Lasher won a $25 million primary over JFK's grandson Jack Schlossberg — who finished a distant third — and former conservative lawyer George Conway. Schlossberg's loss fit a broader 2026 pattern: political dynasties are struggling at the ballot box. In South Carolina, retired Admiral Nancy Lacore, ousted from her Navy Reserve post by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, won the Democratic nomination in a district that has repeatedly backed Donald Trump.
Senator Cory Booker celebrated record Democratic turnout while warning that the Republican-controlled Congress was offering no meaningful check on presidential power. The larger question the night posed — whether the Democratic establishment can adapt to this insurgency or will continue to be surprised by it — remains open, with similar contests already taking shape in Colorado and beyond.
On a Tuesday night in June, New York City's mayor Zohran Mamdani achieved something that would have seemed improbable just months earlier: he backed three congressional candidates in Democratic primaries, and all three won. Two of them defeated sitting House members. The results announced over the course of the evening amounted to a referendum on the direction of the Democratic Party itself—and a demonstration of how much political power has accumulated in the hands of a new generation of democratic socialists, particularly in large, liberal cities.
Brad Lander's victory in New York's 10th District was the night's marquee upset. He defeated incumbent Rep. Dan Goldman, a wealthy Democrat who had represented the district since 2023. Lander, who is Jewish, made the Israel-Gaza conflict central to his challenge. He condemned Israel's military conduct in Gaza and its treatment of Palestinians, while also drawing a sharp distinction between legitimate criticism of Israeli government policy and antisemitism—a line he argued his party had begun to blur. "Too often, people have started using Zionist as a slur for Jews," he said in his victory speech, warning that progressives needed to stand against rising antisemitism rather than look away from it. He pledged that if elected to Congress, he would not vote for additional military aid to Israel while it continued what he characterized as violations of Palestinian human rights and international law. Lander had been endorsed by Mamdani, as well as Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. In his speech, he thanked Goldman for his service and pledged to maintain an immigrant triage center that Goldman had established, which had helped secure the release of over 40 detained immigrants. He also called on his party to "walk away from PACs funded by crypto, Wall Street, AI and AIPAC."
Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old investigator at a public defender's office and doctoral student, won in New York's 13th District, defeating incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat. Her path to victory was rockier than Lander's. CNN's reporting had surfaced deleted social media posts in which she had expressed support for abolishing police, prisons, and borders, and questioned Israel's right to exist. She had also attended a pro-Palestinian rally the day after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks. These revelations threatened to derail her campaign, but she prevailed nonetheless. Her win was particularly notable because it pitted Mamdani against House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who had backed Espaillat. The race crystallized the fault lines within the Democratic Party: disagreements over campaign strategy, affordability policies, and the United States' relationship with Israel.
Mamdani's influence extended beyond New York. In South Carolina, retired three-star Admiral Nancy Lacore won the Democratic nomination for the 1st Congressional District after a runoff. Lacore had spent 35 years in the Navy Reserve before being removed from her post last August by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, along with several other senior military leaders. She campaigned on lowering costs and protecting the coastal environment through flood mitigation and resiliency measures. Democrats hope to make the district, which has voted repeatedly for President Donald Trump, competitive in November.
In New York's 12th District, State Assemblymember Micah Lasher won a crowded primary that drew over $25 million in advertising spending, making it the second-most expensive House primary of the 2026 cycle. Lasher defeated Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of former President John F. Kennedy, as well as George Conway, the former conservative lawyer and Trump critic, and fellow Assemblymember Alex Bores. Schlossberg had entered the race with considerable fanfare, leveraging his famous family name and social media presence, but finished in a distant third. His loss was emblematic of a broader pattern: prominent political dynasties are struggling at the ballot box in 2026. Earlier in June, Jonathan Bush, nephew of George H.W. Bush and cousin of George W. Bush, had lost the Republican gubernatorial primary in Maine.
Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, appearing on CNN after the results began rolling in, expressed enthusiasm about the record turnout in Democratic primaries. "I'm glad that we have a party that can really appeal to the full spectrum of American voters," he said. But he also sounded a note of alarm about the broader political landscape. "There is no check on Donald Trump's power," he warned. "The Republican party, which controls Congress, is bending over doing this advanced form of yoga to let Donald Trump do whatever he wants."
Mamdani's three-for-three success in congressional primaries, combined with recent victories by other democratic socialists—including DC councilmember Janeese Lewis George, who won her city's mayoral primary, and Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who advanced to her city's mayoral runoff—signals a shift in where progressive political power is concentrating. The movement is strongest in large, liberal urban centers. But the wave of challenges facing Democratic incumbents suggests the pressure will only intensify. In Colorado, longtime progressive Rep. Diana DeGette faces a competitive primary challenge from democratic socialist Melat Kiros. The question now is whether the Democratic establishment can adapt to this new political reality, or whether the next cycle will bring more surprises.
Notable Quotes
Democratic voters want to reset the US relationship with Israel. They don't want a foreign policy that compromises on anyone's humanity.— Brad Lander, after his primary victory
Too often, people have started using Zionist as a slur for Jews. Progressives need to be the people who are standing against this, not looking away from it.— Brad Lander, in his victory speech
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why did Mamdani's endorsements matter so much? He's a mayor, not a national figure.
He's a democratic socialist who won New York City's mayoral race. That's a platform. When he backs candidates in congressional primaries, he brings volunteers, money, and credibility with a specific slice of the electorate—younger, urban, more left-wing Democrats who care about Gaza, housing, and Wall Street influence.
But he backed Lander against Goldman, and Goldman is also a Democrat. Why would Mamdani want to oust him?
Because Goldman voted for more military aid to Israel, and Mamdani's base sees that as complicity in Palestinian suffering. For them, it's not enough to be a Democrat. You have to be the *right kind* of Democrat.
Doesn't that risk fracturing the party before November?
It might. But Mamdani would argue the party is already fractured—it's just that the establishment hasn't admitted it yet. His voters are telling him they want something different.
What about the antisemitism issue Lander kept bringing up?
He was trying to thread a needle. He wanted to say: you can criticize Israel's government without hating Jews. But he also acknowledged that some of his supporters had crossed that line. It's a real tension in the progressive movement right now.
Did Schlossberg lose because he's a Kennedy, or because he ran a bad campaign?
Probably both. He had name recognition but no real base. Lasher and Bores were both state legislators with actual roots in the district. Schlossberg was a commentator. In a crowded field, that wasn't enough.
What happens next?
More of this. Democratic incumbents are going to face primary challenges from younger progressives. Some will lose. The party will have to decide whether it's moving left or whether it's going to fight back.