AOC Reportedly Gearing Up for Big 2028 Campaign

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is gearing up for a big campaign for a bigger office in 2028 — they’re just not sure which.

According to Axios’s Alex Thompson, Ocasio-Cortez and her political operation are laying the groundwork for a campaign to either succeed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) or win the White House.

While polling shows that the young, progressive congresswoman would enter the race against Schumer as a favorite and Ocasio-Cortez has held eyebrow-raising events in Upstate New York, many believe she might skip a step and take a shot at securing the Oval Office, “some close allies,” per Thompson, “believe that even if Ocasio-Cortez doesn’t think she could win, she may want to run for the White House to ensure that the Democratic Party’s progressive wing is represented in the primary.”

One longtime aide to Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), the democratic socialist many see Ocasio-Cortez as the political successor to, told Thompson, “She has a supporter base that, in many ways, has a larger potential width than Bernie’s. She has been in the glare of the spotlight from day one and has the national campaigning experience a lot of other potential candidates are now trying to get” adding that “It would be the height of arrogance to assume she couldn’t win the 2028 nomination.”

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/aoc-reportedly-gearing-big-2028-141635741.html

[Fiendish Thingy]

1. Senate please

Schumer needs to retire.

A White House run can follow in 2032 or 2036.

[mvd]

3. Good idea to try Senate first

Unless she sees a lot of momentum for President. I dream of her being President someday. I hope if not in 2028 it would be 2036 - because if she’s running in 2032, either the Democrat had to go one term or (yikes!) a Repuke won.

[SSJVegeta]

7. Mamdani can replace schumer, she should go for the white house

She already has the same kind of support equivalent to a statewide elected figure. She doesnt need to hold a higher office to increase her profile. She has all that as a congressperson. If she wants a real chance to be president (or vice president), this is her opportunity.

I can foresee a Talarico/ AOC ticket (or vice versa)

[Fiendish Thingy]

12. Unfortunately, the 2028 Dem nominee will be a straight white male not named Shapiro or Newsom

Whether we like it or not.

My preference would be Whitmer, who did more in one year with a one seat majority in the legislature than most Dem govs do in two terms with solid legislature majorities.

The consultant class, who convinced the DNC to waste $20 million on studying how to learn to “listen to men”, will likely prevail in structuring the primaries to give the advantage to straight white male candidates. The big donors will follow suit.

Unless, of course, there is some sort of revolutionary change in the power structure at the DNC.

Name recognition polls aside, my sense is Murphy and Beshear are best positioned to capture the 2028 nomination.

Mamdani should finish his term as Mayor before seeking higher office.

AOC has yet to face voters in a statewide election, let alone nationwide. She will make a great president and presidential candidate once she has a term or two in the senate.

[H2O Man]

16. Well said.

Very well said, indeed.

I much prefer Whitmer to Newsom. And Shapiro has one issue in PA that would damage him in a national campaign -- the Ellen Greenberg case.

The party's leaders met with corporate leaders earlier this year. They agreed the party needs to be more corporate friendly, to marginalize AOC and Bernie, and for candidates to attend more gun shows. Surely, being filmed in a tank worked so well for our '88 candidate. Gosh, let's bring out Dick Cheney again! Genius!

It is time for the grass roots to take control of our party.

[SSJVegeta]

17. Murphy or beshear will likely result in a reinforcement of maga authoritarianism

James Talarico or Jon Ossoff I think are the highest profile electable white straight males who can run for president. I think the only other electable Democrats are not white straight males.

[Fiendish Thingy]

25. Walk me through your thinking

How would Murphy or Beshear “result in a reinforcement of MAGA authoritarianism”?

I’m not comprehending your logic.

I think if AOC were to run for president in 2028 (she won’t IMO) that would trigger a backlash providing the result you fear.

Talarico, like AOC, is the future of both the party and the nation, but he’s not going to be the nominee in 2028. Let’s get him to the senate first, along with AOC.

[SSJVegeta]

29. Sure

Murphy and Beshear are establishment democrats who get elected largely on charisma-and less due to policy. Due to that reason, it would be hard for them to compete with the continued right wing populism which has historically galvanized working class voters.

Literally any left wing populist -especially a populist with a track record of winning in red states like both Ossoff and Talarico, would create a true firewall against that same right wing populism that attracts a fairly diverse coalition of the working class. AOC would do the same. Likely better than any white male aa a result of the enormous cohesion she's developed across broad swaths of working class voters over most of the last decade.

Im making a lot of assumptions with Osssoff and Talarico, but if they win their senate seats like I absolutely think they will then they should absolutely both be considered top contenders for president.

[Fiendish Thingy]

30. I don't think of Ossoff as either populist or charismatic.

But the point is moot, since neither Ossoff or Talarico (or AOC) will be running for president in 2028.

Ossoff will be lucky to keep his senate seat- he is probably the most vulnerable Dem senator in 2026.

[SSJVegeta]

31. Ossoff definitely tends to position himself as one, and his campaign was largely successful because of it

https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2021/1/8/georgia-victories-show-model-for-democratic-governance

We will see who ends up running. At this point I would actually be surprised if AOC does not.

Talarico already has the endorsement for president of a fairly influential crackpot pundit (Joe rogan). If he wins his senate seat, he'd likely get a ton of pressure to run for president as well. I cant see him brushing that off too easily...


Both Ossoff and Warnock are also in a strong place to run...

[H2O Man]

14. Nope.

AOC knows what she is doing. Mamdani is not in position to replace Schumer.

[SSJVegeta]

18. Mamdani is one of the most popular Democrats as of now.

He could likely have that seat if he wanted it.

Assuming that popularity stays constant.

[H2O Man]

20. His plans are

very different than what you propose. I support him and his plans. They are based in reality.

[Ace Rothstein]

23. He's polling under 50% in one of the bluest cities in the country.

Let's pump the breaks on Mamdani.

[SSJVegeta]

35. Helluva way to spin a 20-30% lead that is likely underestimating his actual support

Last edited Sun Sep 21, 2025, 11:37 AM - Edit history (1)

Polls matter little when you regularly WIN more than 50% of the vote and are likely to exceed 50% in the GE off of policy and pure voter outreach alone (he beat Cuomo with 56% in the primaries-soemthing no poll remotely predicted) whose appeal is largely across party lines.

Pumping the breaks on a guy like this would be radically handicapping ourselvss.

[mr715]

36. He's winning handily.

In a 4 way race.

He's winning handily in a 2 person race.

Bet you $5 he gets 50%+ on election day.

[SSJVegeta]

37. Its like saying pump the breaks on bill clinton cause he didn't win 50% of the vote.

[mr715]

38. That Obama dude didn't even win 50% of the Iowa caucus in 2008!

Pump the breaks.

[WarGamer]

2. good for her! Let's see a vigorous Primary

[Celerity]

4. Senate for sure. nt

[H2O Man]

5. Recommended.

AOC has significant support among grass roots Democrats in upstate New York. In fact, I was just talking about this about an hour ago with an old activist friend. The first day I heard she was going to primary Rep. Crowley, I contacted her campaign. It reminded me of when a young boxer named Cassius Clay was preparing to fight legendary light heavyweight champion Archie Moore: "Archie's been living off the fat of the land. I'm her to give him his pension plan."

I am thinking she will give Chuck his first and his only campaign loss if she enters the primary.

[Ping Tung]

6. AOC/Newsom? Newsom/AOC? I like it either way.

[some_of_us_are_sane]

9. Me too!

I hope they BOTH have good protection.

[Fiendish Thingy]

13. It won't be either.

I guarantee it.

Name recognition polls aside, Murphy and Beshear are best positioned to win the nomination for 2028.

Wish it were not so, but when the DNC spends $20 million studying how to “listen to men”, the writing is on the wall,

[Ping Tung]

15. The DNC may become aware that Politics As Usual is no longer viable.

I just hope we have an open primaries nation wide. .

[Wanderlust988]

8. I think AOC's support around the country is very deep, but narrow

She would do well in the major cities, but outside of that, she'd get clobbered in a national election.

[H2O Man]

11. The OP

is about a state election.

[DavidDvorkin]

34. It's also about her possibly running for president.

[SocialDemocrat61]

10. I'd vote for her

for whatever she runs for.

[Melon]

19. I can't support this. Her name as well as Newsom draw to much negativity across the nation

I believe they’d get clobbered in any nationwide election and I’ve never really got behind her and the squad.
I’m really starting to believe we need absolute new blood into our system without so much baggage.

[H2O Man]

21. oh deer!

[Melon]

22. Alls not lost...I do like Shapiro and Moore

But I wish someone like Mark Cuban would run.

[Fiendish Thingy]

26. LOL! Cuban?

We don’t need any billionaires on the ticket.

Let him write checks for the nominee- that’s where he’s most useful.

[Bettie]

24. Please, go to the Senate

we can't have another woman as our candidate....probably ever.

The US is misogynistic, more than anything. She would be an amazing president, Harris would have been, Clinton would have been, but the US population will never elect a woman.

[Mike Nelson]

27. Hope she...

... does both, but I would prefer the Senate. That's really reachable. True, a Presidential run would give Dems a fine new Bernie - which brings passion, balance, and new ideas. Also, people would see how smart she is... the Conservative media portrays her as stupid. She's so far from that...

[bamagal62]

28. I'm surprised

There wasn’t one mention of Pritzker in this thread.

[Renew Deal]

33. I see one

[Renew Deal]

32. She should run for Senate.

And although she is trusted by people that don't easily trust people, Senate is the next logical step. I think the presidential field will be too crowded with governors and it will be hard to break through.