Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, from New York’s 14th congressional district. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Nearly one year into the Trump presidency, conversations about the 2028 presidential race have already begun. One name frequently mentioned in the race for the White House has been Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, or AOC, a well-known 36-year-old Democratic congresswoman from New York.
According to her official website, “In January of 2019, Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez was sworn-in as the youngest woman and youngest Latina ever to serve in Congress.” Furthermore, one piece of legislation that Ocasio-Cortez is known for and gained national attention for is the Green New Deal resolution. According to Congress’ official site, the resolution was introduced in April of 2023 and has five goals, including reducing greenhouse gas and toxic emissions, creating union jobs, “investing in infrastructure and industry,” “securing clean air and water,” and “promoting justice and equality.” However, some disagree with the Deal’s policies, including members of the American Action Forum, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Dan Bosch, Ben Gitis, Dan Goldbeck, and Philip Rossetti. In their article discussing the proposal, they state their concerns regarding everyday decisions and expenses. They say, “The Green New Deal is clearly very expensive. Its further expansion of the federal government’s role in some of the most basic decisions of daily life, however, would likely have a more lasting and damaging impact than its enormous price tag.”
Recently, many rumours have surfaced alleging AOC’s ambitions for president in the next election. Stephen Neukam of Axios says, “Ocasio-Cortez is positioning herself for a political leap in 2028, whether for president or challenging [Senate Democratic leader] Chuck Schumer in a Democratic Senate primary.” On this topic, Neukam interviewed independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who said “that’s her decision to make” and “I’ve been out on the streets with her, people come up and how she responds to people is so incredibly genuine and open…that’s a gift that she has.” However, during his interview with Axios Sanders also shouted out other progressives he found notable. He stated “it’s not just Alexandria. You’ve got a lot of great young people right now in the progressive caucus, in the House, Greg Casar in Texas doing a great job. Pramila Jayapal. Ilhan Omar. You’ve got many of them.”
Ocasio-Cortez’s connection with Sanders in progressive politics predates her time in Congress. According to her official site, Ocasio-Cortez “worked as a volunteer organizer for Bernie Sanders in the South Bronx” during his 2016 presidential bid, “expanding her skills in electoral organizing and activism.”
Gabrielle Fahmy and Geoff Earle of The New York Post also weighed in on AOC’s ambitions, stating “she [AOC] wrapped up the quarter with $11.8 million in cash on hand, new Federal Election Commission filings show. That’s money that could be funneled into a Senate or even White House campaign, as per FEC rules.” Furthermore, Fahmy and Earle said that AOC was “confirmed…to be weighing both options for 2028, and her die-hard fans are already rolling out ‘AOC for President 2028’ bumper stickers.”
Despite these rumors, AOC has not made any official statements addressing the 2028 Senate or presidential races. According to RealClearPolitics, AOC is currently at a 7.7% polling average in national Democratic presidential primary polls, putting her under California Governor Gavin Newsom, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
