The socialist movement in the Democratic Party, focused on racialized politics and hating rich people, is a movement of rich white Democrats, as poll after poll continues to prove.
The Detroit News/Glengariff poll of the Democratic primary in the Michigan Senate race is the latest proof of this. Abdul el Sayed is the candidate of the socialist Islamist wing of the party, backed by such figures as Sen. Bernie Sanders (VT), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY), and Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI). Rep. Haley Stevens is the more establishment candidate, backed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. The poll shows Stevens leading 48%-41%.
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The breakdown of the poll is far more interesting, though. Stevens, who is as white as the Michigan snow, is crushing El-Sayed among black Democratic voters, 67%-21%. Stevens also has a 22-point lead over el Sayed among voters without college degrees. El-Sayed, part of a movement that obsesses over race and hating the wealthy, is leading Stevens among college graduates (+7) and white voters (+12). El-Sayed’s socialist base is not the working class or a coalition of minorities; it’s rich white Democrats.
This is not limited to el Sayed. In Maine, former Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner ran a campaign focused on his (fake) working-class persona, and yet the socialist trailed GOP Sen. Susan Collins among non-college voters by 21 points. Platner polled better among white college graduates than he did among minority voters.
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In New York City’s 2025 mayoral election, socialist Zohran Mamdani performed better among voters with higher educational status, outright losing among voters who did not graduate high school or attend college. The same was true based on income, with Mamdani progressively performing better among voters the richer they were, and outright losing the least wealthy contingent of voters. Mamdani performed better among white college-educated voters than he did among black non-college voters.
When you combine this with the fact that Platner, el Sayed, and Mamdani all come from personal wealth, it is undeniable that the socialist movement overtaking the Democratic Party is one full of wealthy elites, bolstered by rich, white Democratic voters. All the wailing against the wealthy or the scourge of white institutional racism is an act, while rich, white Democrats elect their fellow wealthy elites to represent their own interests. The el Sayeds of the political world can pretend they represent a working-class coalition all they like, but the polling makes it clear who their movement truly represents.