Centrist Democrats Are Rolling Up Their Sleeves and Punching Left

Third Way Launches $15 Million Effort to Counter Democratic Socialists of America

The centrist advocacy organization Third Way announced a $15 million campaign aimed at reducing the influence of the Democratic Socialists of America within the Democratic Party, following primary victories by several candidates aligned with the group in Michigan.

The announcement came after Abdul El-Sayed won the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Michigan. El-Sayed defeated Representative Haley Stevens in the August primary. Stevens conceded the race, and several Democratic figures attended a subsequent rally for El-Sayed in Detroit. Third Way president Jonathan Cowan stated that the new effort would focus on the Democratic Socialists of America rather than individual candidates. He described the organization as presenting a risk to the Democratic Party due to its positions on the Gaza conflict, criminal justice policies, and economic issues. Cowan also pointed to the Michigan results as evidence that such candidates could affect outcomes in presidential swing states.

The campaign will include opposition research, polling, social media activity, and outreach to Democratic activists and leaders. It will address both candidates who identify explicitly as democratic socialists and those who receive support from the group without adopting the label, according to Cowan’s comments to New York Times reporter Shane Goldmacher.

Third Way was founded more than two decades ago. Its origins trace to Americans for Gun Safety, an organization backed by technology executive Andrew McKelvey that advocated for measures such as closing the gun-show loophole. The group later reorganized under the Third Way name with Cowan as president. During the Obama administration, it supported the 2012 budget negotiations that included extensions of certain tax provisions and reductions in federal spending growth. In 2013, Cowan and colleague Jim Kessler criticized a proposal by Senator Elizabeth Warren to expand Social Security benefits, describing it in a Wall Street Journal op-ed as likely to produce negative fiscal outcomes.

Third Way receives funding from corporate and philanthropic sources. Reporting by Lee Fang in 2013 identified contributions facilitated through the lobbying firm Peck, Madigan, Jones & Stewart, with additional support from entities including Deutsche Bank, Intel, the Business Roundtable, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, PhRMA, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Board members have included hedge-fund executives Daniel Loeb and Berek Kaufman. More recent tax filings reviewed by the outlet Sludge list contributions from Breakthrough Energy, associated with Bill Gates, and the investment fund Arabella Advisors, along with continued support from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. As a dark-money organization, Third Way is not required to disclose all donors publicly.

A working paper by political scientists Jacob Grumbach and Adam Bonica examined candidate positioning in recent election cycles. The authors found that in a polarized environment, voters responded more strongly to candidates who aligned with established ideological positions within each party, leading to higher turnout among core supporters. The paper noted that moderate messaging did not produce consistent electoral advantages. Commentator Zeeshan Aleem analyzed the findings and observed that declining institutional trust had increased the salience of anti-establishment appeals across both parties.

Third Way has stated that its current initiative seeks to prevent the Democratic Socialists of America from shaping the party’s national identity ahead of the 2028 presidential cycle. The group has cited specific policy differences on foreign affairs, public safety, and economic regulation as factors that could affect performance in competitive states. Following the 2024 presidential election, Third Way issued recommendations that included reducing the influence of small-dollar donors and emphasizing messages focused on economic growth and support for private enterprise rather than redistribution.

The organization’s approach reflects a long-standing emphasis on positioning the Democratic Party toward the political center on fiscal and regulatory questions. Its current activities occur against a backdrop of primary results in Michigan that elevated candidates who received organized support from democratic socialist networks.