Over 500 people packed the Holy Trinity Cultural Arts Center on Saturday, Feb. 21 for the official campaign launch of Greg Levy for Senate. Levy’s socialist bid for senate presents a  different type of campaign and political orientation for Ohio–and he’s not afraid to show it. 

“Our greatest challenge has never been the willingness to fight. It has been the ability to organize in a way that can convert rage into power. To win a future where working class people have the power to determine their destiny. A socialist future.” - Greg Levy

Levy is running as a candidate of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), joining a wave of left-leaning politicians running for–and winning–office in the United States, including local democratic socialist Tanmay Shah, who clinched a win as Cleveland City Councilman this past cycle. 

The program hosted a variety of speakers, including PSL organizer Deja Gaston, Senior Pastor Bunch of Fifth Christian Church, and 2024 PSL Presidential Candidate Claudia De La Cruz. Also taking the stage was the Robeson Singers–a self-described revolutionary gospel choir founded by Levy. 

Several attendees of the launch all noted the high energy and morale of the event. One attendee who described himself as a beginner in the political sphere noted the digestible manner in which Greg spoke about political issues. 

“It was dope, it was inspiring, he made me feel that there was still hope in the political world. Everything felt like everyone was there for the same reason, the same purpose: to make our community and country a better place. The run he will go on after this, I know it will be generational.” - Rondae, launch party attendee 

Greg Levy’s socialist campaign in Ohio certainly marks a shifting political landscape for the State, and country. The popularization of socialism in common discourse, now translating into leftist-alligned political runs across the country, comes at a time where increasing numbers of Americans report being dissatisfied with the two-party system. 

For Levy and his campaign, this dissatisfaction is clarity emerging from lived experiences. Experiences that clarify a fundamental wrongness in the existing structure and its two parties. Levy seeks to fill this political void with the class-conscious opposition campaign now officially launched this past Saturday.  

*Disclaimer: Benjamin Mullin-Vanneste is an organizer with the Party for Socialism and Liberation