The rise of democratic socialists in recent House primaries is certainly posing problems for the Democratic Party.
But as Republicans seek to make this a central issue in the 2026 midterm elections, new data indicates it might not be as big a liability for Democrats as one might think.
A case in point: A new poll suggests that a democratic socialist candidate is actually less of a liability than being a MAGA supporter or being endorsed by President Donald Trump.
The new CNBC poll got at this question in an interesting way. It asked registered voters whether they would be more or less likely to vote for candidates with various associations.
While 50% of voters said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate who describes themselves as a democratic socialist, just 32% said they would be more likely. That’s not too good.
