Less than six months ago, Mathewos Samson, 26, volunteered for the first time in his life to canvass for Democratic Socialist Kelsea Bond, who won their Atlanta City Council District 2 seat in a landslide last November. Now he's running as a Democratic Socialist himself for Atlanta's House District 58.
Last Saturday, he launched his campaign to a packed house at Manuel's Tavern. "There's a status quo for our politics, where they're not putting working people at the forefront," Samson told a crowd of over 75 supporters. "I'm running on affordable housing, healthcare for everyone, and fully funding our schools."
Samson only joined the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) last October to campaign for Bond. But on March 5, he woke up to urgent text messages from local DSA leaders asking him to run for HD 58, just a day before the qualifying deadline.
The heavily gerrymandered district snakes from Virginia-Highland southwest through Old Fourth Ward, a slice of Inman Park, Downtown, West End, Adams Park, and ends in Ben Hill. Rep. Park Cannon had quietly decided not to seek reelection, leaving only one candidate, Demetria Henderson, qualified for the Democratic primary on May 19.
For a district that substantially overlaps with Bond's council seat, DSA leaders saw an opportunity to replicate their 2025 success.
