SOCIALIST STATE SLATE

We Made History With New York's New Left

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INSURGENT DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST CANDIDATES ELECTED

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SHOCKWAVE SENT THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY

The Story

Zohran Mamdani’s meteoric rise and victory dispelled long-held assumptions about where NYC-DSA and democratic socialists could win. So for the 2026 primary cycle, NYC-DSA set out to mobilize these newly-energized voters to show up for ten insurgent socialist candidates.

The Challenge

NYC-DSA was running their largest slate of candidates ever in a low-turnout election cycle where every Democratic candidate was claiming to be aligned with Zohran and his platform. This stretched NYC-DSA’s comms resources thin at a time their campaigns needed narratives and robust messaging strategies that could survive the topsy-turvy world of elections while standing out from the crowd. 

Our Approach

A good candidate already contains the raw materials needed to win. Our role is to surface them, pressure-test them, and strategically assemble them into their strongest possible positioning.

Instead of focus groups or pre-packaged narratives, we help candidates break down their narrative to its core parts, identify tensions before they become liabilities, force difficult decisions early, and help teams establish a durable communications architecture that can guide everything from speeches to field scripts to rapid response.

It’s more than creating a great slogan (though we do that too). It’s a political identity that can flourish in real, everyday places where people actually encounter politics.

“When you’re in the final weeks of a campaign and every hour and every decision matters, Greenpill is exactly the kind of partner you want beside you."

Christopher Toia, Campaign Manager for Aber Kawas

THE WINS

ABER KAWAS FOR STATE SENATE

Aber Kawas entered the race as a respected Palestinian community organizer with deep roots in labor organizing, anti-ICE advocacy, and the movement for Palestinian liberation.

After initially planning an Assembly campaign, she pivoted to running for State Senate when the incumbent unexpectedly stepped down. We sharpened the campaign’s core message to reflect both the district's diverse identity and Kawas’s political philosophy, and merge local concerns with international solidarity.

Greenpill’s work extended beyond strategy to execution, producing organic social video content and transforming endorsement footage from Mayor Zohran Mamdani into a series of digital and television advertisements.

ILLAPA SAIRITUPAC FOR AD65

After one of our principals advised a previous campaign for housing organizer, anti-ICE activist, and DSA ecosocialist leader Illapa Sairitupac, Greenpill helped evolve the messaging for a dramatically changed electoral landscape. We worked to preserve the campaign's authentic political heart, while adapting its communications to a new strategic reality.

DAVID ORKIN FOR AD38

The race between NYC-DSA endorsed David Orkin and incumbent Jennifer Rajkumar may have been the cycle's most volatile. Our messaging workshop and rapid response support helped keep Orkin’s communications grounded as the campaign successfully navigated Rajkumar’s forged petition signatures, court challenges, huge outside spending, and other increasingly bizarre twists and turns as befitting the ouster of Eric Adams' last ally in Albany.

FROM PIPEDREAM TO REALITY

All three of our candidates won their primaries with unassailable margins, sending shockwaves through the political establishment. 

From Asthma Alley to the Hudson Valley to the Commie Corridor, we’ve shown time and again that candidates can not only run on their left wing principles but, when paired with the right narrative and strategy, win while doing so too. And we’re only just getting started.