GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan — The press has fixated lately on a supposed civil war between the Democratic Party’s moderate establishment and its left-wing flank. Far-left newcomers won House primaries in New York and Colorado by condemning Israel and billionaires, and Graham Platner vanquished a sitting governor in the Maine Senate primary with a similar message before suspending his campaign on Wednesday after a sexual-assault allegation.
Yet a closer look at the party suggests that there is no war—at least, not yet. Progressive populists keep winning, while Democratic incumbents have failed to persuasively criticize their challengers’ most radical views. The next major test for the party will take place in less than a month, when Michigan’s Democratic voters choose their Senate candidate.
The biggest question is whether anyone can stop Abdul El-Sayed.
