Keynote to the CPUSA National Elections Conference,  May 23, 2026.

Today we’re gathered together to discuss our participation in the upcoming midterms. And clearly, this will be one of the most important conversations we’ve had in a very long time.

It’s important because our goal is to unite the party in the fight against MAGA. It’s important because we’re also tasked with building the party in the process. And by now, we know that neither of these two goals can be taken for granted.

Not hardly. It’s not a secret, comrades, that some of us remain more than a little skeptical of the big “D” Democratic opposition, given their track record, and that’s impacted our participation in electoral work in some places. And with regard to party-building, it’s also not a secret that our lack of fielding communist candidates greatly reduced our public presence and also our ability to recruit and grow.

However, there is good news on both counts. First, the anti-MAGA coalition is gaining strength daily. No Kings 3 and May Day are cases in point. A mass, democratic, and anti-fascist movement of tens of millions has re-emerged to challenge the MAGA forces.

And importantly, the labor movement is playing a bigger and bigger role in it.

And that is vital because politics in this country cannot be left to the bourgeois politicians and their parties. As we’ve said many times before, without mass pressure, centrists and liberals will always move to the right. Fortunately, over the last year, the people’s movement has vocally expressed its discontent with how many of our elected officials were responding to the MAGA crisis, and it’s had an impact. There’s no question about that. And in this regard, we say, “Keep the pressure on,” because without that pressure, all bets are off.

Now I’m happy to say that there’s other good news as well. And that news is that our party is increasingly a visible public force in anti-MAGA movements and coalitions around the country. And we can proudly say our clubs and members have been there from jump street in marches and rallies across the country.

But that’s not all: we are also acknowledged members of sponsoring coalitions in a number of major cities, among them DC, LA, Chicago, and NYC. And that’s big. There’s been some red-baiting, but the truth is, it’s fallen flat on its face. Anti-communism has less and less of an impact. In fact, we may have even reached a turning point.

Here I want to pause and give special recognition to our younger Party and YCL comrades who are proudly wearing our colors and keeping the red flag flying. They are developing ties with elected officials, union leaders, faith leaders and community organizations. They’re inviting them to address our meetings, and these forces are accepting! In one big metropolitan city, council members speak at YCL meetings; in Philly, candidates for Congress pose in front of our bookstore; in DC, they address our club conference. And then there’s Brother Fred Redmond’s address to the PWW May Day Town Hall.

Comrades, we have to think deeply about what this suggests in terms of shifts in mass thought patterns among our class and people. And what it might portend in terms of the mass growth of the party. If, as they say, politics is the art of the possible, well, a whole lot more might be possible than we have realized so far.

And it is in these circumstances that party clubs and members have taken our convention’s call to run for office, and they are running with it and getting elected! In fact, some of our comrades got elected last Tuesday. Again, congratulations. You’re doing us proud. And where we’re not running ourselves, we’re involved in struggle-oriented campaigns, and we’re helping win some of those as well. And even when you’re not winning outright, you’re winning by the example you’re setting. Here I want to single out the work of the New York YCL and the party that linked a campaign to save public housing with the upcoming November elections. And comrades, that fight is not over.

Comrades, we have a helluva fight in front of us. The fascist danger is stalking the land. And they’re taking big strides. Giant steps really. And as last Tuesday’s election demonstrated, they’re brooking no opposition. And they’ve been given carte blanche by the ruling class to do whatever they want. Total immunity. And it’s not just the Supreme Court. It’s the IRS as well. Not only will there be no further investigation of Trump and his family, but they created a $1.6 billion slush fund of taxpayer money to enable the fascist right to wage legal and political warfare against Trump’s enemies. And this includes the January 6th coup plotters.

And then there’s the decision by the Supreme Court to cancel African-American representation in the Deep South, effectively disenfranchising millions of Black voters. Some 20 Congressional districts are at stake. With the overturning of the doctrine of disparate impact – addressing the results of discrimination, not intent – from the ruling class’ point of view, the civil rights counter-revolution is complete. The right to equal representation is gone; affirmative action is out the door; abortion rights are finished. And mark my words, the right to collective bargaining is next.

Look: make no mistake: this is an attack on the entire working class. When 20 African American seats are lost in the U.S. House, that means 20 fewer votes for the PRO Act, 20 fewer votes for Social Security, and 20 fewer votes for health care or enforcing the Voting Rights Act. That is 20 fewer votes for civil rights for children. And yeah, they got rid of that too with the dismantling of the Department of Education. That’s the domestic piece.

And then, of course, there’s the lawlessness of MAGA imperialism: its wanton murder of people on the high seas, its kidnapping of presidents, the waging of war against 11 countries, its support for the Gaza genocide, and now the indictment of Raúl Castro.

This is what is at stake in November. You know, a few minutes ago, I spoke about a turning point in anti-communism. If you think about it, that may reflect a deeper turning point in the effort to inflict a decisive defeat on the far right. Everything is pointing in that direction, whether it be local elections, the drop in public approval ratings, or the price of gas. But nothing is guaranteed. We don’t even know if the MAGA forces will honor the election results.

And this is why we cannot stand aside. In fact, standing aside is capitulating to fascism. What did the great Dimitrov say? “Those who do not fight fascism in its preparatory stages, in fact, facilitate its growth.”

I’m not in the mood to facilitate the KKK and neo-Nazis.
I’m not in the mood to stand by while Black folks are lynched and trans people are murdered.
I am not in the mood to sit on the sidelines while voting rights, union rights, and abortion rights are trampled.
I am just not in the mood. And neither are you.

Let’s unite and fight! Let us use the workers’ and people’s might to finally defeat the MAGA fascist right.

Images: 2026 Selma Bridge Crossing by Andi Rice. CC BY-NC 2.o.  CPUSA at the 2025 Aug. 28 March on Wall Street by Cameron Orr. CC BY-NC 2.o.