by Bobby Gronert and Wesley Hoy

Comrades of UW-Madison YDSA and Madison-Area DSA,

As we approach one of the biggest decisions in the history of Madison-Area DSA and UW-Madison YDSA, we want to share our thoughts on the question of endorsing Francesca Hong.

This question comes at a time of crisis. Wealth continues to accumulate in the hands of those who already have it, as life gets worse for those destitute and barely getting by. No longer able to satisfy our bloodlust purely overseas, Nazi admirers have been armed by the state and sent to walk our streets; “a force of the unemployable terrorizing the employed”, to paraphrase Will Menaker. Liberal institutions, the entire system of liberal democracy, seems to only continue to be swept away by the rising fascist tide. Actions like NSPM-7, which designates “anti-capitalist” groups as domestic terror organizations, are already putting socialists in the crosshair, and it’s only a matter of time until they act on their ambitions and use their Gestapo to come after us too. 

We did not choose the troubling circumstances we find ourselves in. While the fascists are organized in their cruelty, staying passive is recklessness bordering on negligence. For these reasons, although we hold some reservations about Fran’s campaign, we strongly encourage MADSA to vote to endorse her for Governor of Wisconsin.

To fight this regime, we need to organize working people from the Mississippi River to the Monongahela Valley. In Fran’s campaign, we have been presented an opportunity to do just that in Wisconsin. Just as Bernie Sander’s 2016 campaign grew DSA from 8.5k on election day to 21k in 2017, or how Zohran’s upstart Mayoral bid doubled NYC DSA’s membership rolls, Fran’s statewide campaign will not just grow MADSA’s organizing in Madison — it will empower rural working communities to join our fight too.  

As co-chairs of YDSA’s Electoral Working Group at UW-Madison, we can seamlessly integrate Fran’s campaign into our campus organizing alongside our campaign for Common Council District 8. This will demonstrate our maturity and seriousness to students desperate for a legitimate way to fight fascism. In this country, many see elections and police-approved protests as their only way to participate in politics.  A statewide socialist campaign would mobilize this mass of politically unorganized young and working folks, and would draw together a coalition hungry for change into an actionable, growing, and revolutionary movement statewide.

By harnessing the potential of Francesca Hong’s gubernatorial campaign, we could create a statewide socialist movement that transcends the rural-urban divide by connecting DSA chapters across the entire state. We envision a future of constant cooperation between Madison and Milwaukee DSA, YDSA Chapters at Superior, Oshkosh, Parkside, Stout, and even high schools around the state. Though we were pleased to see 150 people in the room for Fran’s Candidate Forum during the most recent General Meeting, 150 people in Madison will not win this fight, and will not satisfy us.  We hope to see 150 DSA members in a room in Platteville, as a working class movement does not win back Southwestern Wisconsin for the Democrats, but wins it for DSA. With the Fran already amassing over 1,500 volunteers for her campaign, she presents a clear first step in this vision.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz recently said that our only way to fight this fascist tide is “in the courts and at the ballot box.” As Democratic Socialists (emphasis on the D), we know the ballot box not to be the only expression of working class democracy, and the courts not to be an ally of the working class at all. Organizing doesn’t stop at the ballot box, and the momentum we bring to this campaign doesn’t either. DSA must not be just an organization, but be the organization behind this campaign, defining its policy, its strategy, and providing a healthy source of manpower and enthusiasm. 

Just as our campaign won’t die on April 7th, we must make sure that Fran’s does not meet its end on August 11th or November 3rd. We will rally for Fran when she produces tangible wins for working people, and ensure these wins are seen as products of the socialist movement. If Fran delivers on universal childcare, guaranteed paid leave, free school means, legalizing cannabis, and criminal justice reform, they will be seen as victories of socialism, not the Democratic Party. And when she fails to deliver, we will stick to our principles as a chapter and hold her accountable. 

As Eugene Debs once said: “I can see the dawn of the better day for humanity. The people are awakening. In due time they will and must come to their own.” The tradition of socialism in Wisconsin has remained dormant for too long. We must fight to re-awaken the masses.

A new era for Wisconsin socialists is here.

In solidarity, 

Bobby Gronert and Wesley Hoy

Co-Chairs of the UW-Madison YDSA Electoral Working Group

Carter Burg contributed to this piece.