FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JULY 23, 2026
For more information, contact:
Kilian Mallon
https://www.instagram.com/jettjasper4dcward1/
https://www.jettjasperfordcward1.com/
JETT JASPER CALLS ON APARNA RAJ TO ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT DSA’S RADICAL 2026 PLATFORM
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Ward 1 Council candidate Jett Jasper called on his opponent, Aparna Raj, to answer questions about the Democratic Socialists of America’s newly published 2026 national platform. Raj is a former Chair of Metro DC DSA, served for three years on its Steering Committee, and has received the organization’s endorsement.
The DSA platform calls for sweeping changes to the American economy, Constitution, federal government, criminal justice system, immigration policy, and national defense, including (see end of press release for direct quotations):
- The drafting of a “new constitution” to create a “democratic socialist republic.”
- Abolishing the Presidency, Supreme Court, and Senate as we know them (and thus the Balance of Powers).
- Defunding the Department of War.
- Government-run food, housing, and medical industries.
- Having taxpayers foot the bill for all student debt.
- Taking “steps toward fully abolishing the police and prison system.”
- Ending all deportations, providing amnesty for all illegal immigrants (i.e. including those convicted of violent felonies) and allowing unlimited migration to the United States (and thus to D.C.).
“Attacks on our federal government will directly affect the careers of thousands of people in D.C.,” said Jasper. “These are local issues for D.C. voters.”
“Radical DSA policies would create surging inflation, crippling taxation, and endless inefficiencies, as they have in every failed socialist economy. They will make it harder for businesses to stay open, for young professionals to save money, and for the police to keep our neighborhoods safe,” Jasper continued.
“The voters of Ward 1 deserve clear answers,” Jasper added. “Which elements of the DSA’s 2026 platform does Aparna support? Which would she advance here in Washington, D.C.? And did she or Metro DC DSA participate in developing this platform?”
“Those are straightforward questions. Ward 1 voters deserve straightforward answers.”
Documentation for the platform summary above can be found below and at https://program.dsausa.org/.
- “We are workers fighting to transform society: to win the battle for democracy, draft a new constitution, and create a democratic socialist republic.”
- “Expand the House of Representatives, implement proportional representation and ranked choice voting in all elections, and abolish the Senate” and “Abolish the Electoral College. Replace the President and Supreme Court with an executive and judiciary chosen by and subordinate to Congress.”
- “Defund the Department of War.”
- “Speaking of bills: you don’t really have them anymore. You have no debt. You don’t need health insurance. You don’t pay a mortgage or have a landlord, because comfortable housing is a human right. Your retirement is publicly funded. Food, education, energy, medicine, and transportation aren’t for-profit businesses; they are common goods and utilities.”
- “...cancel all student debt.”
- “Demilitarize police departments, disempower police unions, and redirect funding to public services as steps towards fully abolishing the police and prison system which protects the rich and jails the poor.”
- “Legalize migration, grant amnesty for all immigrants regardless of status, provide a path to citizenship for all permanent residents, and end visa caps and quotas.”
Paid for by Jett Jasper For Our Nation’s Capital; Jett Jasper, Treasurer, 1708 V St #5, Washington, D.C., 20009.
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