There is a fun Netflix documentary where a guy creates his own cult: Kumare.
In the end he feels bad for taking advantage of peoples’ trust particularly when vulnerable and has a semi-sincere apology for including them in his project.
So the first requirement is you need to be a bit of a sociopath or a true believer (aka a bit crazy)
It’s not about”progressives” it’s about the average Joe voter who (in some ways rightly) couldn’t see a difference enough to make voting (an unnecessarily difficult chore) worthwhile.
The second problem, is that there is no collective class consciousness. At best there is maybe a collective unconscious feeling. Progressives often ascribe a much greater awareness than is warranted to the proletariat. Ironically after likely doing no organizing other than debating each other in closed left wing YouTube and Reddit threads.