Since Bernie Sanders’s 2016 presidential run democratic socialists have seen tremendous gains in the electoral terrain at a local, state, and national level. Chicago elected six socialist aldermen in 2019, New York now has elected six socialist representatives in the state legislature, and four US Congress members belong to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Jessica Mason, running in Texas’s thirtieth congressional district, is trying to become the fifth.

Growing up in the Hamilton Village apartments in South Dallas, Mason’s family struggled to keep the lights on and eventually faced eviction, forcing her to move in with distant relatives as she finished school. She says she saw firsthand how economic insecurity leads to instability — including a lack of access to affordable health care, good schooling, and secure housing.

Mason is a Navy veteran, housing activist, and democratic socialist running for congress in one of the bluest districts in the country. She sat down with Jacobin contributor Peter Lucas to discuss her insurgent campaign in a district that’s been dominated by the establishment.