Portside

The Democratic Socialists of America, Justice Democrats, and a burgeoning ecosystem of progressive and labor organizations have played large roles in spurring the political upheaval in the 2026 midterm elections. And U.S. support for Israel amid its genocide in Gaza has been a key issue undergirding every race.

This year’s primary season isn’t over yet, but there’s a number of new progressive and leftists who are all but guaranteed to join Congress this fall, after winning in safe blue districts.

Here’s a look at the new coalition headed to Washington:

1. Adam Hamawy, New Jersey

A veteran U.S. Army combat surgeon, Adam Hamawy is credited with saving Senator Tammy Duckworth’s life during the Iraq War. He helped treat patients after 9/11. And he volunteered to go to Gaza and treat patients mutilated by Israel’s genocide.

He first went to Gaza in May 2024. Israel then closed the Rafah crossing, stranding his team in the genocide zone. As an American, a path for escape was offered, but he chose to stay with the rest of his team. He then went to Gaza again a year later. In sum, he performed over 100 surgeries.

Hamawy launched his campaign in New Jersey’s 12th congressional district to fill the seat of outgoing Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, running in a crowded field. Parrying against large moneyed interests, and dubious accusations of ties to terrorism – including from Democratic officials – Hamawy won.

Now, a doctor who spent weeks in a war zone treating patients bombed with U.S. tax dollars is set to work in the building that helped create those patients.

2. Chris Rabb, Pennsylvania

Chris Rabb has served in the Pennsylvania state House since 2017. There, he established his progressive credentials early on. He helped start the Pennsylvania Climate Caucus, and pursued unprecedented legislation taking on greenwashing – deceptive marketing practices that falsely make products out to be good for the environment.

In his campaign for Pennsylvania’s third congressional district, to fill the seat of outgoing Rep. Dwight Evans, Rabb earned the support of Justice Democrats, the Sunrise Movement, the Democratic Socialists of America, and the new pro-Palestine super PAC American Priorities. AIPAC sought to quietly get involved, reportedly funding the campaign of one of his early main opponents, Dr. Ala Stanford (which Stanford denied). The association stuck, stymieing Stanford’s campaign, and helping Rabb rise.

Rabb, who has among the most progressive foreign policy platforms in American politics, will now represent the bluest district in the U.S.

3. Brad Lander, New York

Fresh off a warm alliance with Zohran Mamdani in the New York City mayoral election, and an endorsement from the mayor in tow, Brad Lander came into his bid to unseat Rep. Dan Goldman with wind beneath his sails.

As a youngster, Lander revered Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Rabbi Abraham Joshu Heschel, who marched alongside King during the Civil Rights Movement and was an outspoken opponent of the Vietnam War. In his teens, Lander helped put together a march in Washington in solidarity with Jewish people trying to flee the Soviet Union.

Lander served in New York’s city council from 2010 to 2021, and as the city comptroller from 2022 to 2025. In the city council, he co-founded the progressive caucus. As he ascended, Lander grew to become an arch-rival to Eric Adams, scrutinizing his mayoralship and holding him to account. As city comptroller, Lander he recommended New York drop prominent asset managers for failing to meet the city’s climate expectations. Lander, who identifies as a liberal Zionist, ended the city’s holdings in Israel Bonds, amid its genocide in Gaza.

With Trump as president, Lander monitored immigration holding conditions and accompanied immigrants to court – to the point of being arrested by federal agents for “obstructing.” (Lander was found not guilty.) His resistance, in a city in the crosshairs of Trump’s ire, helped him coast to victory over Goldman.

4. Claire Valdez, New York

Claire Valdez, who’s originally from Texas, studied the arts in Chicago. She moved to New York in 2015, working first as an operations manager at a museum in Queens, fixing toilets and sinks, before working in the visual arts department at Columbia University, where she joined the UAW, and rose the ranks. Soon, Valdez ran for the New York State Assembly. She won in 2024.

In office, Valdez was arrested twice: once after demonstrating outside the offices of Senators Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, protesting their opposition to blocking arms sales to Israel. And again, at the court where Lander was arrested, as she similarly sought to monitor federal agents. Valdez was a leading advocate for ex-assemblymember Zohran Mamdani’s Not On Our Dime Act, to bar New York charities from aiding illegal Israeli settlement activity. She also backed legislation to bar state and local funding for federal immigration enforcement.

Valdez mounted an upstart campaign against well-liked Brooklyn borough president Antonio Reynoso, to fill outgoing Rep. Nydia Velazquez’s seat. Valdez, backed by Mayor Mamdani, shattered expectations – winning by more than 20 points. Now, as she heads to Congress, Valdez told me that she’s ready to carry forward the movement for democratic socialism – and made no guarantees she will support Hakeem Jeffries as leader.

5. Darializa Avila Chevalier, New York

The daughter of a truck driver and a case worker, Darializa Avila Chevalier first moved to New York in 2012 to study at Columbia University. While there, she organized with Students for Justice in Palestine, and went to Nablus to teach English to Palestinian children. Before graduating, she helped found the pro-Palestine student coalition Columbia University Apartheid Divest, which has since been targeted by the Trump administration and pro-Israel actors.

After graduating, she continued organizing, and pursued research into immigration law and police brutality. In 2024, she participated in the Columbia Gaza student encampments, where she and fellow Columbia affiliates were brutalized by police. Avila Chevalier also worked as an investigator at a public defense legal organization. This year, like Valdez, Avila Chevalier was arrested at a demonstration against Schumer and Gillibrand’s support for arms sales to Israel.

Like Lander, the Mamdani-backed democratic socialist notched a high-profile win against an establishment-backed incumbent: Adriano Espaillat. She knocked the 71-year-old for lackluster defense against Trump’s authoritarianism, including, namely, the kidnapping of her fellow student activist Mahmoud Khalil. Now, she’s set to represent the district home to Columbia University.

6. Melat Kiros, Colorado

Melat Kiros, a democratic socialist born in 1997, unseated a Democrat who was first elected to Congress in 1997. Just a week after Lander and Avila Chevalier’s victories, Kiros became the third leftist primary challenger to knock out an incumbent.

Kiros was born in Ethiopia and grew up in Aurora, Colorado. An attorney, Kiros lost her job with a corporate law firm after writing an article defending pro-Palestine student activists. Afterwards, she came back home to pursue a PhD, focusing on reparations, universal basic income, and other reforms to achieve social, economic, and environmental equity. She worked as a barista to pay off student loans.

As with some of the other candidates on this list, Kiros was up against big moneyed-interests and groups tied to AIPAC. But after trailing by more than 30 points in a poll conducted just months prior, Kiros trounced Degette by nearly 14 points. She adds to the growing list of incoming House Democrats who have not pledged to unconditionally support Jeffries as leader.

What’s Next?

The number of Democratic socialists in congress will more than double (from three to eight), and the primary season is not yet over. There are several other races where Democrats in blue seats are facing challenges from the left this cycle, including:

• August 4: Donavan McKinney is challenging Rep. Shri Thanedar in Michigan.
• August 4: Former Rep. Cori Bush is challenging Rep. Wesley Bell in Missouri.
• August 11: Andrew Rice is challenging Rep. Rosa DeLauro in Connecticut.
• August 11: Peggy Flanagan is running against Rep. Angie Craig for Senate in Minnesota.
• August 18: Elijah Manley is challenging Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz in Florida.

Additionally, two incumbent Democrats will face progressive challengers in California in November.

Angela Gonzalez-Torres is running against Rep. Jimmy Gomez in the general election runoff, and Angélica Dueñas is competing against Rep. Luz Rivas.

[Prem Thakker is a Zeteo Political Correspondent & Columnist]

Zeteo is a new media organization that seeks to answer the questions that really matter, while always striving for the truth. Founded by Mehdi Hasan, Zeteo is a movement for media accountability, unfiltered news and bold opinions.