The Democratic Party’s coalition headed into the 2026 midterms is as broad as it’s been in years. That seems likely to help them pick up dozens of seats in Congress and win majorities back from Republicans in either or both chambers.

One notable and attention-getting portion of that coalition is a group of progressive political newcomers who affiliate with the Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA. This growing left-wing organization had a hand in the 2025 election of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and has high-profile allies in Congress, including U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the independent from Vermont.

In the 2026 election cycle, DSA-affiliated candidates have won a handful of Democratic primaries. Most did so in districts that Democrats are very likely to win in November. As a result, at least a half-dozen DSA-affiliated candidates are all but guaranteed a seat in the next Congress.

But history tells us that a “big tent” party is also likely to face big divisions and even bigger challenges when putting together a governing coalition in Congress. Depending on the size of the Democrats’ possible majorities, the DSA-affiliated lawmakers’ reach and power, despite their small numbers, could extend beyond elections and deep into the process of legislating.

The challenge of selecting a leader

Before any policy can even be debated, Congress has to elect its leadership. In the Senate, the party with the most seats selects the “majority leader” and the other party the “minority leader.” This vote is fully internal to each party: Democratic senators will vote on their leader and Republicans on theirs. But in the House, this vote is on full display. Per the Constitution, the full House must select the speaker of the House. Because only a simple majority is required to win, the majority party typically dominates the speaker selection process.

While these processes seem simple on paper, they may be a hurdle for relatively unpopular Democratic leaders facing an ideologically divided caucus and........

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