WASHINGTON — “Squad” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been decidedly absent from some of the most competitive battleground races this cycle — as the liberal darling mulls a 2028 presidential run.
Moderate Democrats appear to have shown an aversion to stumping with Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) as the midterm homestretch kicks into gear, raising questions about the Bronx and Queens rep’s clout beyond the lefty base.
“I get the sense that a lot of swing state Dems are byproducts of the very Democratic Party that lost 1,000 seats since 2010 and lost to Trump twice,” Corbin Trent, Ocasio-Cortez’s former communications director, bluntly told The Post about the apparent snub from moderates.
“They are the offspring of a Democratic Party without a vision, without a heart or soul. One that is pulled hither and yon by the increasingly poor advice of consultants,” he added. “These folks are why TN and WV are no longer blue states.”
Several moderate Democrats in nail-biters such as Hudson Valley’s Cait Conley, who haven’t campaigned with Ocasio-Cortez, didn’t seem to have qualms campaigning with other bigwig Democrats like former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
There have been a few swing-state Democrats mired in tough races who have expressed interest in bringing Ocasio-Cortez to the campaign trail, with a spokesperson for Michigan Senate hopeful Dr. Abdul El-Sayed telling Axios, there are “a lot of Michiganders who can’t wait to have AOC back in town.”
The progressive darling also campaigned with Florida Senate nominee Angie Nixon, a self-described democratic socialist, earlier this month.
But most of those Democrats interested in stumping with Ocasio-Cortez have largely hewed to the lefty flank of the Democratic coalition, with El-Sayed previously campaigning with far-left streamer Hasan Piker during his primary, for example,
Over the weekend, Ocasio-Cortez began a swing through upstate New York — a region of the state that could prove critical if she were to vie for the Senate in 2028. During that trip, she briefly crossed paths with Rep. Josh Riley (D-NY), whose district is generally considered not very competitive this cycle.
“Candidates innately know what might work and what doesn’t. They’ll use another politician if it helps,” a source close to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) told The Post.
“They’ll stay away if it doesn’t. Each decision is case by case and rooted in self-interest. Nothing is personal. It’s about winning.”
During the primary cycle, Ocasio-Cortez had been welcomed with open arms into close races to stump with hard-core progressives.
The Queens and Bronx rep mounted a high-profile blitz across the country during her “Fighting the Oligarchy” tour with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)
But one veteran Democratic operative stressed that “Candidates tend to run to the middle in a general election, so they might not have AOC in for a Congressional midterm.”
“Ultimately, surrogates don’t matter much in these races, and I wouldn’t read too deeply into what this means for a presidential campaign,” the operative added. “Those are won on more than ideology, like charisma, energy, enthusiasm, and the ability to connect with voters.”
“All of those are aspects at which she excels.”
When asked about her lack of appearances in swing state races, the congresswoman’s chief of staff, Mike Casca, simply told Axios: “Call us on Nov. 3.”
The Post contacted Ocasio-Cortez’s team for comment.
“In general — life doesn’t wait for you to be ready for things. Sometimes life just makes things ready for you,” she told the New York Times in a recent interview.
At another point, she added: “We will learn a lot in November.”
