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PORTLAND, Maine — Americans who were asked for their opinions of socialism by Digital offered sharply different interpretations of the ideology, with some embracing its promises of economic equality while others expressed strong reservations about government control over the means of production.
Digital took to the streets of Maine’s largest city, a progressive bastion, to talk to residents about their definitions of socialism and how far they would be willing to go to embrace its ideals.
The topic of socialism has featured prominently in campaign coverage during this midterm election cycle, as candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) scored high-profile victories over more centrist rivals in a slew of Democratic primaries this year. DSA’s outsized influence has been a driving force in the ballot box battle for the Democratic Party’s ideological future.
LIBERAL HOTSPOT RESIDENTS CAN’T AGREE ON WHAT SOCIALISM MEANS
Demonstrators hold a Democratic Socialists of America banner ahead of a Rent Guidelines Board vote in New York on Thursday, June 25, 2026. (Bloomberg via Getty Images)
A new national poll indicates 32% of voters have a favorable view of socialism, with 64% seeing it in an unfavorable way. But the favorable rating matches an all-time high, first reached five years ago, since first began asking the question in 2019. And a September Gallup poll found that 43% of Americans had a positive image of socialism, the highest level since the polling organization began tracking the question in 2010.
Lewis, a retired Navy veteran, said socialism was a good thing because it “looks out for people’s needs…. and it’s not communism.”
Socialism and communism both emphasize collective ownership of the means of production, such as factories, businesses and major industries. But socialism encompasses a range of approaches, including those that allow private enterprise, while communism traditionally envisions the abolition of private ownership of productive assets and, ultimately, a classless society.
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Lewis turned skeptical when Digital asked whether he would personally surrender private property to government or collective control.
“I guess. I hadn’t really thought about socialism that way. I think about taking care of the needs of people, you know, things like… national health care, things like that,” he answered. “I don’t like government taking things away from you.”
Nolan, who recently moved to Portland, told Digital “there’s a lot of wealth imbalance in America right now, and we could benefit from some sort of leveling system.”
He said socialism exists to help “people who aren’t as, you know, benefiting in society.”
Nolan added that “business owners should have their autonomy” and that “people deserve to earn their money.”
“But there are a lot of really high-end… corporations that benefit so much… that really don’t need that much wealth… there’s so much exorbitant wealth at the top end that a lot of that could trickle down to people who are disadvantaged and don’t have homes,” Nolan stated.
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Nola, another resident passing through Portland’s Monument Square, said socialism’s “a good thing. It means equity.”
Asked about the takeover of businesses and means of production under socialism, Nola said she still “100%” supported socialism.
“I’m the daughter of a small business owner. I’ve seen how tough it is to run a small business in this country and how easy it is for corporations to just do whatever they want,” she explained. “So if we gave actually back to small businesses and the government helped them out… and so much of the market that’s privatized actually became public, I think… with how big the U.S. has gotten, it’s only a good thing.”
Ted disagreed.
“Socialism overall, I think it’s a horrible idea,” he emphasized. “If we can learn from history, anything from history, we see that it’s gonna really give way too much power to the government institution. It’s gonna… make things that are harmful overall for everyone… it’s like it’s dictatorship.”
Ted argued that “socialism just impoverishes. Capitalism, the free market economy is a good thing.”
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He added that while “some people are very wealthy and very greedy,” that overall capitalism “creates other wealth for other people.”
The new poll found that 51% of voters had a favorable view of capitalism, compared with 32% who viewed socialism favorably. Another 46% had an unfavorable view of capitalism.
