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Can a Democratic Socialist Win Wisconsin? Fran Hong Says "Yes!"

The Nation · back to the audit

Democratic socialism is having a moment in 2026. In congressional and big-city mayoral primaries across the country, candidates who support economic and social democracy are winning Democratic nominations—defeating incumbent members of the US House of Representatives, coming out on top in open-seat contests for mayoralties, and generally prevailing with a frequency that has corporate Democrats running scared.

Hong has been leading in several polls for Wisconsin's August 11 Democratic gubernatorial primary.

Even as she rouses crowds with a declaration that "possibility is bound only by our ambition," political insiders keep dismissing Hong's bid as an unlikely fit for Wisconsin.

On CNN, former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel—a historically Wall Street–friendly Democrat who fancies himself a presidential contender in 2028—recently ran through a list of swing states that included Wisconsin and declared, "They're not electing socialists."