Is Ann Arbor Ready for Democratic Socialism?
Dave Zeglen is a longtime pro-union, pro-tenant, pro-Palestine, anti-ICE organizer backed by the Democratic Socialists of America — and his sights are set on Ann Arbor City Hall.
Ann Arbor City Council candidate Dave Zeglen is trying to revive the Midwest’s proud sewer socialist tradition with a platform that spans public housing, labor protections, municipalized utilities, immigrant defense, and grassroots democratic reform. (Dave Zeglen for the People, Ward 4)
Last year, Zohran Mamdani, Katie Wilson, and other socialists surprised mainstream commentators by overcoming billionaire resistance to win major offices across the country. Their example has been electric: the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) crossed one hundred thousand members for the first time ever, a suite of progressive Democrats look set for big primary wins ahead of the midterms, and new progressive and democratic socialist candidates are popping up across the country to run for municipal government.
Dave Zeglen is a lecturer at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he teaches cultural theory and international relations. An active member of the nontenured faculty Lecturers’ Employee Organization (AFT Local 6244), Zeglen is running for Ann Arbor City Council in Ward 4. He’s been endorsed by DSA and is looking to shake up Ann Arbor’s champagne liberal politics with a more radically democratic vision. Jacobin’s Matt McManus, a former colleague at the University of Michigan, spoke with Zeglen about what he hopes to achieve in municipal politics.
Matt McManus
Thank you for agreeing to do this interview with me. It’s exciting that we get to collaborate again. For our readers, can you speak a little bit about who you are and what you’re trying to accomplish by running for public office?
Dave Zeglen
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