In the latest solo episode of the Explaining History Podcast, I explore the striking parallels between the British Labour Party’s war on Jeremy Corbyn and the Democrat establishment’s growing fear of Zohran Mamdani – and what it tells us about the bankruptcy of the centre-left.

The Liberalism That Wasn’t

Let’s start with a confession. I used to be irritated by the American right’s habit of calling everything left of centre “liberal”. Fox News pundits would scream about “liberals” as if they were the vanguard of a socialist revolution. And I would think: no, you’re confusing liberalism with the left. They are not the same thing.

But the more I look at the Democrats – and, for that matter, the post-Thatcher Labour Party – the more I think the pundits had a point. Not about the great replacement conspiracy theories, obviously. But about the fact that figures like Nancy Pelosi and Hillary Clinton really are liberals in the classical sense: they believe in individual liberty (for the wealthy), they champion lifestyle freedoms (gay rights, feminism) while ignoring the structural inequalities that make those freedoms hollow, and they are deeply, unshakably committed to the functioning of markets and the empowerment of private wealth.

Thomas Frank nailed this in *Listen, Liberal*. The Democrats, like Labour, abandoned their working-class base decades ago. They made peace with Wall Street, embraced Silicon Valley, and convinced themselves that microcredit in Bangladesh was more important than universal healthcare in America. They became the party of the professional-managerial class – a party that talks about diversity while serving the interests of the ultra-wealthy.

The Corbyn Object Lesson

This brings us to Jeremy Corbyn. In 2015, after years of Tory austerity – austerity that killed hundreds of thousands of people and left millions in poverty – the Labour Party elected a genuine anti-austerity leader. Corbyn didn’t expect to win. He was meant to be a voice for the left, nothing more. But he won. And then, for five years, he was subjected to a rolling coup by his own party.

The Labour right, organised through secretive groups like Labour Together and funded by billionaire donors, waged a relentless campaign against him. They thought he would lose in 2017. Instead, he nearly won, forcing Theresa May into a hung parliament. That terrified them. So they doubled down. By 2019, the sabotage was so effective that the party was rendered unelectable – and Corbyn was replaced by Keir Starmer.

Starmer is not a moderate. He is a right-wing figure who has supported Israel’s genocide in Gaza, restricted the right to protest in unprecedented ways, and made peace with the private equity firms that are stripping Britain of its remaining assets. The “grown-ups” are back in charge – and they are taking the country to the cleaners.

Enter Mamdani

Now we come to Zohran Mamdani. Mamdani is a socialist New York State Assembly member who has shown that a popular left platform is possible. He talks about rent, childcare, and transport – the material issues that wreck people’s lives. He refuses to throw trans people under the bus. He refuses to waver on Palestine. He has endorsed candidates who win – and that makes him dangerous.

The fear is not that Mamdani is a fringe figure. The fear is that he might be effective. The fear is that he might show New Yorkers – and eventually, Americans – that socialism can work. That a society that provides for its people is not a utopian fantasy but a practical alternative to the misery of neoliberal decay.

The War That Is Coming

The Democrat establishment is going to war against Mamdani. It is already happening. Just as Labour’s right did to Corbyn, they will try to portray him as incompetent, unelectable, and dangerous. They will fund his opponents. They will smear him in the press. They will do everything they can to ensure that the left never gets a foothold in the party.

But there is hope. Because once people experience something that works – free healthcare, affordable housing, reliable transport – they fight for it. The British people love the NHS, even when it is broken and underfunded. The idea of privatising it remains electoral poison. If Mamdani can show that his policies work, New Yorkers will defend them – and the establishment will find itself fighting a losing battle.

Conclusion

The struggle between the left and the centre-left is not a sideshow. It is the central political drama of our time. The centre-left has failed. It has sold out its principles, abandoned its base, and made peace with the very forces that are destroying democracy. The left offers an alternative – but it must be prepared for the war that is coming.

The lesson of Corbyn is clear: the establishment will not tolerate a popular left. It will do everything in its power to destroy it. But the lesson of the NHS is also clear: once people experience something good, they will not give it up without a fight. That is where hope lies.

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