Communist Party USA Unexpectedly Wins Three Local Seats in November Election
On a bright early morning this year, the Communist Party USA (CP‑USA) announced it would field candidates in a fresh wave of local contests after a four‑decade hiatus. Opposite the party’s long‑chosen red flag, the magazine’s front cover in the 2025 issue marked a reshaping of the party’s strategy, as it pushed “the hammer and sickle” back into the electoral arena— and the results were already in.
Three candidates ran openly under the CP‑USA banner in the Nov. 4 elections and emerged victorious in Maine, Massachusetts, and upstate New York. The win doubles the tally of party members who have been elected to any American public office in the party’s 106‑year history.
— “We’ve come back to the electoral field to fight again—just as we did on the first day of the modern era,” said former CP‑USA candidate James Building to the Post.
The Party traces its roots to 1919, the year when the Russian Revolution saw the first communist government rise to power. Its current platform holds out a vision of a single‑party state guided by Marxist‑Leninist doctrine, arguing that capitalism must be replaced to realise a “workers’ paradise.”
“Capitalism," said co‑chair Joe Sims in an interview with The Daily Show in October, “needs a complete overhaul; the system that built the modern world and lifted billions from poverty is distasteful.” Sims used the segment to distinguish his political approach from that of New York City mayor‑elect Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
Sims explained that while members of the DSA "believe they can work within the Democratic Party," the CP‑USA is “not interested in reforming the system" at all. “We’ve posted cartoons of the DSA in the middle of the election campaign," said a source close to the party, “to show that they’re the reformist wing, not the revolutionary front.”
In Bangor, Maine, CP‑USA veteran Daniel Carson took one seat on the city council. Meanwhile, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Brazilian immigrant Luisa de Paula Santos—prominently listed in CP‑USA materials—was elected to the local school board. Separately, 20‑year‑old Hannah Shvets, a college sophomore and CP‑USA member, won a seat on Ithaca’s Common Council, promising to push “denser” housing, reparations for Black residents and safe‑harbor status for undocumented immigrants.
Local broadcaster Chuck Ellis, who runs the podcast Muddy Waters US about Maine’s political scene, found the fact that Kendrick Carsons were on the ballot "fantastic." Ellis said: “The media tends to focus on Washington, not what’s really playing out in communities. Many voters know nothing about local candidates, but when the CP‑USA donates momentum, they’re basically catching people off guard.” He pointed out that Maine voters often look for “independent‑minded” representatives and “if you’re lukewarm, the votes don’t count.”
Across the country, the resurgence of left‑wing youth politics has sparked debates about socialism. Economics professor Benjamin Powell from Texas Tech explained that many students line up behind “socialist rhetoric” without grasping the technical core of Marxism: “Governments taking control of major industries or abolishing private property.” Funding the narrative is a new wave of CP‑USA members, who begin to question the monolithic Democratic Party and advocate for revolutionary changes.
Powell noted that whereas many socialists and communists “feel less intimidating on a local level," nationally their rhetoric often appears more radical. He said a ten percent slice of attendees at socialist conferences are outright enthusiasts of historical communist leaders, a trend amplified by the absence of a visible “party line” in local elections.
The CP‑USA’s re‑entry into the field is a carefully calculated campaign. In 2021 the organization announced it would restart candidate recruiting in unlabelled, nonpartisan contests to “hide” its affiliation from voters. That year the party ran 29‑year‑old U.S. Army veteran Steven Estrada openly in an early‑2021 Long Beach city council race—though he was third in the final tally—and Estrada has since described himself as “pro‑China.” Estrada told the Post that “China represents a progressive force on a global stage.” In his view, the DSA is a "big‑tent" movement where “hard‑core Marxists, anarchists, and other far‑leftists co‑exist “old‑school” ways of racking up support, but they don’t see the need to change the capitalist framework.”
He praised former Soviet experiments as “valuable" and believes China continues the “evolution” of Marxism after the Soviet collapse. Estrada is a firm believer that the CP‑USA’s official stance on China remains friendly, but he acknowledges that many Americans hold a “worrying” view of the country.
Despite the victories, both Sims and co‑chair Rossana Cambron have declined to provide comments to The Post. Likewise, Shvets, Santos and Carson have not responded to interview requests.
The alliance between the CP‑USA and the progressive “red” campaign still is not straightforward. Estrada—whom the party recently expelled for being “too friendly” with Democrats—claims he’s moved to a new communist faction that believes mainstream politics can benefit from the resurgence of the “inclusive” political views. He reiterated that “no one should dismiss MAGA," and he appears to think that MAGA reflects the true will of blue‑collar voters, and that there is a “different way” for communists to confront everyday politics—and that Trump is one of the most authentic political movements in America.
He concluded, “The forces that truly fuel MAGA are ordinary working‑class people who want their voices heard in Washington, D.C. They’re not stuck in a stale left‑wing ideology—I see them as revolutionaries too.”
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