“Vote harder” don’t even start to work because US have a two party system with two right wing parties. Why there is no sign of a left party gaining traction? DSA is the biggest left organization but is miniscule (and not very left).
There is a way of radicalising, say… one tenth of the population?
First Past The Post voting (FPTP) guarantees a static two-party system. Until we move to Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) electoralism is a pointless endeavor. The DSA has expended the majority of its energy over the past seven years opting to “change the democrats from the inside” rather than to form its own party or even to advocate for Ranked Choice Voting, and that strategy has failed miserably. Even as recently as last year, during their 2021 convention (which I attended as a delegate), they both voted down a proposal for a break from the Democrats, and voted down a proposal to enforce RCV for all DSA internal elections.
Basically, the DSA is hopelessly convinced both that they can change the Democrats from within, and that they don’t need RCV. That is a losing strategy on all fronts.
I was there too. It was confusing.