In his first address as mayor, Zohran Mamdani declared: “I was elected as a democratic socialist, and I will govern as a democratic socialist. I will not abandon my principles for fear of being deemed radical.”

That bold assertion delighted many of his admirers on the left while confirming the fears of his critics on the right and center. But in terms of what he aims to accomplish and in the context of history, it was not really true. Mamdani does not intend to give wage earners control of their workplaces or to turn private businesses into public property, as Karl Marx advocated (along with other renowned socialists he inspired like Eugene Debs, who was also a small-d democrat, and Vladimir Lenin, who was decidedly not). He does not call, as did the U.K. Labour Party right after World War II, to nationalize major industries and have them run by government employees.

Hizzoner wants instead to make transportation, childcare, and housing more “affordable” for every New Yorker. That makes him not a democratic socialist but a social democrat. What’s the difference?

The latter term has never caught on in the United States, but its adherents have a long and successful history in Europe and in developed nations on other continents. Social democrats seek to create a more........

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