A national convention of Democratic Socialists of America members had attendees daydreaming about an AOC presidential run — while debates raged about if they should ever back a pro-Israel candidate, a new report said.
Nearly 500 card-carrying DSA members gathered in Chicago this weekend with Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s comrades outlining their “caucuses” that include names like Marxist Unity Group, Red Star, Bread and Roses and the Commie Caucus, according to the New York Times.
An offshoot crew held a separate “DSA for AOC” rally focused on US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez though some of the democratic socialists wondered if the left-leaning congresswoman has drifted too far from the organization to realistically be their pick, the Times said.
The congresswoman did not attend the rally and hasn’t announced any presidential bid as of yet.
“Who has ever won a campaign in DSA just by saying it was a good idea? We need to build mass consensus across the organization,” national electoral chair Katie Sims told the outlet.
The DSA is riding high after the high-profile win of socialist Mamdani in 2025, capped off by a string of primary victories this year that have emboldened its more than 120,000 rank and file members nationwide.
But some DSA leaders are not yet on board the AOC train, and urged caution against getting ahead of the base while still hashing out the big questions regarding their platform, direction and whether her previous stance on Israel should be disqualifying.
The congresswoman previously supported sending defensive aid to Israel, but at a private NYC-DSA forum in April, she vowed to vote against sending any further military aid to the country, including defensive supplies, according to City & State NY.
