Rahm Emanuel attacks Democratic socialists after Wisconsin primary upset

Former Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman Rahm Emanuel seized the unexpected loss of Democratic Socialists of America member Francesca Hong to establishment-favored David Crowley in the Wisconsin gubernatorial primary to lambaste the party’s socialist wing. He asserted that socialists are disconnected from working-class Americans, particularly those living paycheck to paycheck, and that their appeal is limited to affluent neighborhoods like Park Slope and to struggling PhD students.

Emanuel highlighted the faction’s weak performance among Black voters, a core Democratic constituency, and charged the DSA with ignoring voting-rights battles despite recent surges in Black turnout after Supreme Court changes. He suggested the national media miss the broader narrative of these primaries. While pointing out the socialist wing’s challenges, he cited a win for Arab-American voters in Michigan, where Abdul el Sayed secured the nomination over establishment-backed Rep. Haley Stevens.