With nearly all the votes now counted, pundits and political commentators are declaring New York’s 2026 primary a stunning victory for the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Most notably, DSA-backed candidates for Congress in New York City-based districts defeated two incumbent House Democrats. Their wins come a year after DSAer Zohran Mamdani shocked the nation by winning the Democratic primary for New York City mayor.
The results of the 2026 primary undoubtedly show that the DSA is now a player in New York Democratic politics. But the attention given to the DSA misses another institution behind these far-left primary wins and New York Democrats’ lurch to the Left: the Working Families Party.
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Across the state, the WFP took sides in hot Democratic primaries in deep-blue districts. While it is its own political party with its own ballot line and all the legal advantages state law gives to political parties (advantages the DSA does not enjoy), the WFP’s real political strength comes from its ability to mobilize on behalf of candidates in Democratic primaries.
The WFP has been at this since long before anyone—including veteran New York politicos—had even heard of the DSA, and 2026 proved no exception. From mailers to foot soldiers, the WFP pulled out all the stops to get its favored candidates through the Democratic primaries.
The WFP didn’t just take sides in the highest-profile, headline-grabbing races. It put in an effort to elect its endorsed candidates in down-ballot races. In fact, its focus on electing progressives in state legislative primaries may, over the long term, do far more for its movement than scoring upset wins in congressional races.
In one race, the WFP backed Assemblywoman Jessica González-Rojas in a primary for a Queens state senate seat held by incumbent Jessica Ramos. Ramos had long been identified with the Left, and she originally won her senate seat in a progressive wave in 2018. But Ramos angered the far-left last year by endorsing Andrew Cuomo for mayor even as her name remained on the ballot for that office. Like the effective political machine that it is, the WFP got its revenge by beating Ramos in this year’s primary.
Outside New York City, the party was an early supporter of Buffalo Assemblyman Jon Rivera’s successful primary campaign against incumbent State Senator and Erie County Democratic Chairman Jeremy Zellner. Along with its labor allies in the United Auto Workers and Communications Workers of America, the WFP delivered a substantial and surprising win for Rivera.
The WFP was equally successful in the race to replace Rivera in the assembly. In that Democratic primary contest, the WFP backed attorney Adam Bojak over Karen Hoak, the endorsee of the Erie County Democratic Committee. Most assumed Hoak, a former local elected official who hails from a well-known Democratic political family, would cruise to victory over Bojak, who lost a previous race for the seat in 2020. But the WFP and its support allowed Bojak, also a DSA member, to win by a comfortable margin.
The story of the WFP’s influence was similar in Central New York, where a senior assembly Democrat, Bill Magnarelli, lost his primary for another term in office. You can hardly call Magnarelli, the powerful Assembly Transportation Chair, a centrist Democrat. In his nearly three decades in the assembly, he’s maintained a reliably liberal voting record. That, however, wasn’t enough for the far Left.
Magnarelli’s challenger, Maurice Brown, is a county legislator, avowed socialist, and a former staff member of the Working Families Party. Through direct mail and door knocking, his old WFP colleagues delivered an upset for Brown. On primary night, Magnarelli trailed Brown narrowly, but after counting all the mail and affidavit ballots, Brown prevailed.
This year’s WFP-supported wins are a continuation of gains made last year. While it was Mamdani’s 2025 primary win in New York City that garnered most state and national media attention, the WFP was instrumental in scoring wins for other far-left candidates. Most notably, WFP-backed, left-wing candidates defeated more moderate opponents by comfortable margins in the 2025 Democratic primaries for mayor in Buffalo, Syracuse, and Albany. Along with Mamdani, these far-left executives now run four of New York’s six largest cities.
Where the WFP is notching major wins is noteworthy. It’s not occurring in “purple” districts or municipalities in fights between progressive Democrats and Republicans. Like the DSA, the WFP flexes its political muscles in primary contests in deep blue areas where winning the Democratic primary is tantamount to winning the election. Its message and rhetoric may be directed at MAGA Republicans and President Trump, but the WFP’s real enemy is the center-left of the Democratic Party.
It should be noted that the WFP isn’t always on the same page with the DSA. In this year’s race to replace retiring Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, the two organizations found themselves at odds: the WFP backed Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, while the DSA backed Claire Valdez, a state assemblywoman. Valdez, who was also endorsed by Mamdani, won the primary comfortably.
In New York’s 13th congressional district, the DSA and Mamdani backed challenger Darializa Avila Chevalier over incumbent Adriano Espaillat. The WFP remained neutral in this race. But given that the WFP endorsed Espaillat in previous races, not receiving its support in this race amounted to a major slight.
At least for now, though, it seems like the WFP remains in a stronger position among New York leftists than the DSA. The WFP began establishing itself as a well-oiled machine almost 20 years ago. Prior to Bernie Sanders’s first White House run, the DSA wasn’t even a bit player in New York politics.
And the WFP continues to hold a critical advantage over the DSA in state politics: the legal and campaign finance benefits state law gives to established political parties. Not being a political party, the DSA faces financial and coordination restrictions that the WFP doesn’t need to worry about.
Pundits will continue to talk about the DSA’s big wins in New York’s 2026 Democratic primaries, and it can’t be denied that the DSA and its candidates shocked the New York political scene. But serious students of the political game know that the Working Families Party remains boss in the world of New York progressives.