When you think of quintessential American pastimes, right up there with apple pie and Little League Baseball are fundamentally wrong hot takes following closely watched political campaigns. Much ink has already been spilled covering Tuesday’s Democratic primary election in the Big Apple which saw Zohran Mamdani’s convincing win over former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

At one point during the race, Cuomo enjoyed a 30-point lead in the polls, but over the last few months, Mamdani was able to close the gap and ultimately overtake the former governor due in large part to an aggressive social media and field effort fueled by popular progressive views and endorsements that included Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

Mamdani won because he ran a spirited, engaging campaign that spoke to the frustrations of so many New Yorkers when it came to the high cost of living. It didn’t hurt that the race also became a choice between a fresh newcomer and a scandal-plagued, establishment figure who appeared to resent the very notion of campaigning.

Within minutes of the race being called, leading conservatives declared Mamdani as the de-facto leader of the Democratic Party, practically salivating at the opportunity to tie national Democrats to the 33-year-old democratic socialist. Democrats should not take the bait.

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Rather, I would argue that the two de-facto leaders of my party in 2025 are two pragmatic, center-left women from Congress who also happen to be the nominees for governor in New Jersey and Virginia. 

On June 10, Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., decisively won her primary in the Garden State by 15 points, besting five other well-known and well-funded candidates. Just one week later, former Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., having already done the hard work of clearing the field, made it official by running up the score in Virginia’s primary election.

Both women were elected to Congress in 2018, flipping competitive GOP-held districts. In Sherrill’s case, she replaced a Republican who had been there for nearly 25 years, winning and keeping one of the toughest districts in the state by leaning into her experience as a bridge-building, no-nonsense U.S. Navy helicopter pilot and former federal prosecutor.

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Spanberger is cut from the same cloth, having served previously as a CIA officer and counter-terrorism professional re-elected to the same congressional district that voted for Virginia’s Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2021 and President Trump before that.

Sherrill and Spanberger aren’t social media stars. They don’t lean into performative politics, and they’re not interested in courting controversy. Like their careers in national security before government, they’re doing the actual work of listening, coalition building and legislating. 

Ideology tests may win primaries in deeply blue districts, but both women understand that persuasion – not purity – is what wins general elections and builds durable Democratic majorities in the years to come.

To be clear, this isn’t about silencing progressive voices. Believe me, I want a tent as big as possible and party activists who push the envelope and raise awareness of injustices in our society and government plays an important role. But activism alone is not the same as governing, and passing legislation isn’t achieved through catchy slogans or TikTok memes but rather through the hard work of consensus building.

During the primary in Virginia, Spanberger crisscrossed the commonwealth talking about kitchen-table economics, supporting the federal workforce and public safety. Similarly, Sherrill focused relentlessly on affordability, infrastructure and defending individual freedoms without veering into ideological dogma in the Garden State. 

It’s also important to point out that both women won without compromising on core Democratic values. Both are pro-democracy, pro-choice and pro-growth candidates that are grounded and mission-driven.

Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger are showing Democrats the way forward and will win in November. We should follow their lead.