The House voted 220-192 to condemn socialism in all its forms, with eight Democrats joining Republicans in a vote that also put the chamber on record backing the SAVE Act and election integrity ahead of the midterms.
The House voted 220-192 on Tuesday night to condemn socialism in all its forms, a landmark stand that pulled eight Democrats into the Republican column just weeks before the November midterms. The resolution, backed by every House Republican, also puts the chamber on record supporting election integrity and the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act. Two Democrats voted present.
The vote lands as socialist-aligned candidates keep winning Democratic primaries across the country, handing the GOP a ready-made midterm argument: that the party of the left is drifting toward the ideology that has failed everywhere it has been tried.
The eight Democrats who joined Republicans were Reps. Kathy Castor of Florida, Henry Cuellar of Texas, Don Davis of North Carolina, Jared Golden of Maine, Vicente Gonzalez of Texas, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Darren Soto of Florida, and Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico. Reps. Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania and Maggie Goodlander of New Hampshire voted present.
Two of those defectors -- Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez -- went even further earlier in the day, supplying the critical votes that carried a GOP procedural rule through a nail-biting 209-208 tally. That rule unlocked debate on the socialism resolution and related measures after five House Republicans voted no in protest over the short-term funding fight.
Reps. Pete Sessions and Chip Roy of Texas, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Clay Higgins of Louisiana, and Andy Harris of Maryland opposed the rule, angry over Senate changes to the continuing resolution that kept the government funded. The Senate had attached provisions delaying a hemp product ban and curbing the administration's control over federal grants.
Golden, who is not seeking reelection, and Gluesenkamp Perez, one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the country, rescued the rule anyway. Democratic leadership was blindsided. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Minority Whip Katherine Clark, and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar issued a joint statement calling the move a significant breach of trust and referring the matter to the Committee on Caucus Rules.
The resolution, led by Rep. Jeff Crank of Colorado, condemns socialism and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) while reaffirming support for the SAVE America Act and opposition to non-citizens voting. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise framed it as a two-part stand: denouncing socialism and the idea of non-citizens casting ballots in American elections.
Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger of Texas said the vote puts the left on the record. Socialism has failed everywhere it has been tried without exception, he argued, calling it a dangerous ideology that creates misery for the people it claims to help. Crank called the resolution an easy choice for voters to see where every member of Congress stands.
Democrats countered that the measure was a purely political exercise. Jeffries blasted the SAVE Act language as toxic voter suppression, and Aguilar insisted Democrats are capitalists who objected only to Republicans attaching their voting bill to the condemnation. Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts dismissed the whole effort as silly season during a Monday hearing.
The socialist insurgency inside the Democratic Party has become one of the defining stories of the cycle. DSA-backed challengers have ousted incumbent Democrats in recent primaries, including Darializa Avila Chevalier in New York and Melat Kiros in Colorado, and a small number of sitting House Democrats openly identify as democratic socialists.
Tuesday's vote gives Republicans a clean dividing line heading into November: every Republican on record against socialism and for election integrity, while Democratic leadership voted no and most of the caucus followed. The eight defectors show that even inside the Democratic coalition, support for the party's leftward drift is not unanimous.
The Committee on Caucus Rules will now weigh consequences for Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez, a rare public breach inside a Democratic Caucus already at war with itself over Israel, socialism, and election policy. The SAVE Act remains stalled in the Senate, where it lacks even a simple majority, but Tuesday's vote keeps the issue alive heading into the final stretch before Election Day.
With primaries still unfolding and socialist-aligned candidates on ballots nationwide, the fight over the Democratic Party's direction -- and the GOP's response to it -- is far from over.
The House voted 220-192 to condemn socialism in all its forms, with eight Democrats joining Republicans in a vote that also put the chamber on record backing the SAVE Act and election integrity ahead of the midterms.
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