New York has seen numerous progressive political upsets over the past three years. Working behind the scenes for two of them (as well as one that barely lost) was democratic socialist Luke Hayes. Hayes managed the insurgent campaigns of Jamaal Bowman’s successful run for the Democratic nomination for the House of Representatives in the sixteenth congressional district, Tiffany Cabán’s heartbreaking loss for Queens district attorney, and Alessandra Biaggi’s successful run for State Senate in New York’s thirty-fourth district. Each race was tied to unique waves in the progressive and socialist surge of electoral politics in New York and around the country.

Bowman’s congressional race built off the Squad-like upsets in taking out one of Congress’s biggest hawks and ersatz progressives on a platform for a just domestic and foreign policy. Cabán’s race almost put an abolitionist in the city’s largest county’s district attorney office and lost by only fifty-five votes. And Biaggi’s win against the leader of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), a New York State Senate caucus of Democrats that allied with Republicans to block progressive state-level legislation, was part of a mass grassroots effort that defeated the majority of IDC officeholders and elected socialist state senator Julia Salazar.

Such victories are not possible without people behind the scenes making the campaigns run. Democratic Socialists of America member and former staffer David Duhalde spoke to Hayes about the political history and socialist influence in these three historic races, and what they mean for the Left’s electoral prospects going forward.