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As someone who just ran for St. Paul City Council as a Twin Cities Democratic Socialists of America-endorsed candidate, I’ve witnessed firsthand how democratic socialist organizing strengthens, rather than threatens, progressive politics in Minnesota. The DFL would be wise to recognize this reality rather than distance itself from the activists and ideas that are driving real change in our communities.
Look at the issues gaining traction across the Twin Cities: municipal grocery stores to combat corporate food apartheid, social housing run like public utilities, making wealthy institutions pay their fair share for city services and community-controlled alternatives to punitive policing. These aren’t fringe ideas; they’re practical solutions to problems that market-based approaches have failed to solve. My campaign for municipal grocery in St. Paul, Minneapolis City Council Member Robin Wonsley’s work on renter protections in Minneapolis, state Sen. Omar Fateh’s work on college affordability, St. Paul City Council Member Nelsie Yang’s efforts toward equitable child care access, Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board candidate Michael Wilson’s insistence on inclusive green spaces and Minneapolis City Council candidate Soren Stevenson’s advocacy for affordable housing (and that’s a few of our candidates and leaders) all represent the same impulse: using democratic institutions to serve working people, not corporate profit.
This isn’t ideological purity — it’s political necessity. When corporate Democrats meet in back rooms only to offer means-tested half-measures while Republicans meet in the open and offer outright authoritarianism, democratic socialists provide a clear alternative: bold, democratically based policies that address root causes, not just symptoms. We organize tenants facing displacement, support striking workers and build mutual aid networks that keep communities afloat when institutions fail. This organizing work strengthens the entire progressive coalition by demonstrating what government can accomplish when it serves people instead of profit.
The current federal political moment makes internal divisions even more dangerous. With the Trump administration promising mass deportations, attacks on reproductive rights and the dismantling of democratic norms, Minnesota progressives need every ally we can get. Democratic socialists aren’t trying to purge the DFL — we’re trying to make it more effective at defending the vulnerable and building the multiracial working-class coalition necessary to defeat fascism. A better world is possible, but we must work together to win it for everyday families.
The choice facing Minnesotan Democrats is simple: Embrace the energy and organizing capacity of your democratic socialist neighbors, or watch that energy go elsewhere while we all face increasingly coordinated attacks from the right. The Twin Cities DSA represents the beating heart of progressivism in our region — it’s time the DFL started treating us like partners, not problems.
Cole Hanson is a public health educator and dietitian who lives in St. Paul. He was a candidate in the St. Paul City Council Ward 4 special election in 2025.
