Ad Policy<\/a><\/p>\n A \u201cDream Team\u201d shirt featuring images of Darializa Avila Chevalier, Brad Lander, Zohran Mamdani, and Claire Valdez, outside a polling location in New York on June 23, 2026.<\/p>\n (Michael Nagle \/ Bloomberg via Getty Images)<\/p>\n This week, New York City beat the odds again. A year after Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s historic primary win, a new wave of progressive candidates swept the city<\/a>, shattering long-standing conventions regarding what an elected official should look like or stand for.\u00a0<\/p>\n Aber Kawas, a fellow Bay Ridge, Brooklyn native whom I have been proud to mentor, is on her way to becoming the first Palestinian American elected to the New York State Senate. Darializa Avila Chevalier, who helped organize Columbia University\u2019s encampments protesting the Gaza genocide, is now poised to represent the university in Congress. Brad Lander, a Jewish candidate who pledged to co-sponsor<\/a> the Block the Bombs Act, restricting military aid to Israel, unseated two-term congressman Dan Goldman. And Claire Valdez, who inspired voters with her appetite for championing big, bold domestic and foreign policy changes, is also heading to the House of Representatives. And that\u2019s just a partial tally; strong progressive candidates won big in elections at every single level of government<\/a>.<\/p>\n Many people were absolutely shocked by the scale of these victories. I wasn\u2019t\u2014because I know what it took to get here. I\u2019ve seen a narrative play out in some circles online, alleging that gentrifiers (code for privileged white newcomers) should get the credit for New York City\u2019s primary wins. This narrative erases the many native New Yorkers, communities of color, and working-class people who backed these candidates. I\u2019ve worked with hundreds of these volunteers over the years, and I am one of them.\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019ve spent the last 25 years as a part of this movement, beginning with my early days helping to organize Muslim and Arab communities in New York City and co-founding<\/a> the city\u2019s Muslim Democratic Club. A decade ago, I founded MPower Change<\/a> andMPower Action<\/a> to take that work national, registering and mobilizing tens of thousands of voters across the country through our nonpartisan My Muslim Vote<\/a> campaign.\u00a0<\/p>\n The results of this movement are plain to see. Muslim Americans \u2013 who comprise a mosaic of racial and ethnic identities<\/a> \u2013 are registering to vote in increasing numbers<\/a>, and many more are running for office<\/a> as part of a larger multiracial progressive coalition that is challenging the status quo We are fueled by a desire to challenge decades of U.S. policies that have disproportionately harmed our communities: ICE raids, travel bans, racial profiling, and support for Israel\u2019s ongoing genocide in Palestine and terrorizing of families across the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n As we dive deeper into the 2026 midterms and dip our toes in the 2028 presidential race, these fights will only become more important. On Saturday, thousands of us will gather<\/a> in Washington, DC, to mark America\u2019s 250th by offering a Declaration of Interdependence<\/a> \u2013 a collective vision for the America we want to build as we look ahead to the next 250 years. We know that if we want to bring this declaration to life, we must back values-aligned candidates and mobilize values-aligned voters.\u00a0<\/p>\n Current Issue<\/p>\n Based on my experiences activating voters and advising campaigns in New York and across the country, these are the five core issues I believe that voters and candidates need to focus on now to make our vision of an interdependent America a reality:<\/p>\n Prioritize people over profits. The U.S. is the wealthiest nation in the world, yet millions of Americans cannot afford housing, healthcare, food, or transit. We need elected officials who will answer to working people instead of billionaires. Voters sent that message loud and clear across the country during the 2025 elections\u2014it\u2019s no coincidence that Mayor Mamdani, New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, and Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson<\/a>, three politicians running very different races, won after campaigns promising to tackle the high cost<\/a> of rent, utilities, and groceries\u2014and they delivered the same instruction in New York City on Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n Protect people from tech oligarchs. A handful of tech executives are reshaping our world with little public oversight. AI is increasingly being used to surveil communities, automate warfare, displace workers, and consume environmental resources, while ordinary people are left to bear the consequences. We need elected officials who reflect the many Americans concerned about<\/a> their safety and livelihoods. Though he lost in NY-12, Alex Bores got a significant boost<\/a> from being cast as the candidate who stands up to tech oligarchs, and he encouraged Democrats to seize the issue during his concession speech. Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) has been a vocal advocate for curtailing the power of AI and protecting vulnerable communities from algorithmic discrimination by reintroducing legislation like the AI Civil Rights Act<\/a> and Eliminating Bias in Algorithmic Systems<\/a>. Abdul El-Sayed, who would become the first Muslim in the U.S. Senate if elected, is rising fast in the polls and has called for AI and AI corporations to be regulated like a public utility<\/a>. If big tech isn\u2019t accountable, the harm it inflicts on innocent people across the country and globe will increase exponentially.<\/p>\n Spend our tax dollars at home \u2013 not waging endless wars. From Gaza<\/a> to Iran<\/a>, Americans across party lines are tired of watching their tax dollars used to fund wars that destroy lives and drive up their daily expenses, all while enriching<\/a> corporate shareholders. Criticism of the Israeli government and sympathies toward Palestinians is increasing<\/a> across party lines and receiving financial support from AIPAC-aligned organizations has become a political liability<\/a> for Democratic candidates. Aber Kawas, who ran successfully on a platform that centered Palestinian liberation, helped launch the Not on Our Dime bill<\/a> in 2023 alongside then-Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani\u2014legislation that would stop New York-based charities from using tax-exempt donations to fund Israeli war crimes and illegal settlements.<\/p>\n Defend our right to free speech. Americans are increasingly concerned<\/a> about efforts to silence political speech. Retaliation against U.S. students and workers advocating for Palestinian rights has been so rampant that the Council on American-Islamic Relations reported record institutional discrimination<\/a> last year. This was not limited to Muslims but extended to Arab, Jewish, Black, and Asian students and employees. Voters appreciate candidates who are clear about protecting political speech without exceptions. As El-Sayed articulated<\/a> so well when pushing back against efforts to smear him, we can simultaneously criticize Israel and stand up for our Jewish siblings. Those born outside the U.S. are particularly vulnerable as the Trump administration targets immigrants who express political views they disagree with\u00a0 \u2013 whether by kidnapping<\/a> and jailing university students or by surveilling<\/a> social media accounts to filter out visa applicants it disagrees with. Rep. Adriano Espaillat\u2019s inaction when ICE snatched his own constituent, Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil, away from his pregnant wife was a point Chevalier brought up<\/a> throughout her successful campaign to unseat him. We must ensure that freedom of speech protections extend to every person, regardless of their faith, national origin, or political beliefs. Otherwise, the slide towards authoritarianism will rapidly accelerate.\u00a0<\/p>\n Reject racial and religious profiling. Latino, Black, and Muslim communities are living under the constant threat of being detained and torn apart from their loved ones because of their race, national origin, or religion. These policies go against the values most Americans<\/a> share regarding civil rights and public safety. And they don\u2019t exist in a vacuum. They are written by the same politicians who openly dehumanize our communities. Earlier this year, Rep. Andy Ogle (R-TN) introduced a bill that would ban immigrants from Muslim-majority nations and then declared on social media<\/a> that \u201cMuslims don\u2019t belong in American society.\u201d These policies and hateful rhetoric are two sides of the same coin, and they have deadly consequences, as we saw last month when Amin Abdullah, Nadir Awad, and Mansour Kaziha were killed<\/a> at the Islamic Center of San Diego in a hate-fueled attack. People want candidates who will stand up for fairness and peace in our own streets \u2013 folks like primary winners Lander and Valdez, who were both arrested at 26 Federal Plaza<\/a> last year after refusing to leave until ICE allowed oversight of its makeshift detention facility.<\/p>\n We cannot take for granted that the vision we share for America will become a reality. Yesterday\u2019s primaries offer a glimpse of what we can achieve together \u2013 shaping the next 250 years through every vote we cast and every policy we fight for. Let\u2019s carry this momentum forward and build a country that serves all of us.<\/p>\n With the midterm elections now firmly upon us, the question is whether Democratic candidates will do more than merely occupy ballot lines as mild alternatives to the red-hot crisis that is Donald Trump.<\/p>\n As Trump spends over $1 billion a day on a globally destabilizing war on Iran and admits that he doesn\u2019t \u201cthink about Americans\u2019 financial situation,\u201d millions across the country are struggling with the surging costs of essentials. Democrats must seize this moment and advance bold, small-\u201cd\u201d populist ideas\u2014not settle for cynical caution that once again snatches defeat from the jaws of victory.<\/p>\n The Nation elevates progressive ideas, movements, and elected officials achieving real change across the country into the national conversation. At the same time, our journalists are exposing how crypto and AI-funded super PACs are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to knock out candidates they oppose, reporting on the devastating impact of the Supreme Court\u2019s evisceration of the Voting Rights Act, and sounding the alarm on attempts by red states to quickly redraw electoral maps, disenfranchising Southern Black voters.<\/p>\n We can play this critical role because of support from readers like you. This June, we\u2019re raising $20,000 to power The Nation\u2019s independent journalism in the run-up to November\u2019s immensely consequential elections.<\/p>\n It\u2019s in our power to build a more just society, and your support at this critical moment brings us closer to that bold vision. I hope you\u2019ll donate today.<\/p>\n Onward, <\/p>\n Katrina vanden Heuvel Linda Sarsour<\/a><\/p>\n Linda Sarsour is the founder of MPower Change, an organization dedicated to empowering the political voices of Muslims nationwide. She is also cofounder of the Women\u2019s March.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tMore from The Nation<\/p>\n A proposed new rule changing the way the federal government hands out money could be absolutely devastating for every single person in this country.<\/p>\n \n Gregg Gonsalves<\/a> <\/p>\n The epic results in New York confirmed it: Support for Palestinian rights is driving an unprecedented political transformation\u2014and there\u2019s no going back.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n Margaret DeReus<\/a> <\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/GettyImages-2282447608.jpg\")
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Editor and Publisher, The Nation<\/p>\n
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