AOC Might Be Laying Foundation For A Potential 2028 Senate Campaign: Report

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez might be laying a foundation for a potential Senate run in 2028, according to a new report.

Although there has been talk of a presidential run in her future, a Senate campaign appears more likely, Axios detailed, adding that the congressional representative has been making appearances in upstate New York. Her activities have included meeting with local officials and starting a voter turnout program.

AOC visited Buffalo and met with Mayor Sean Ryan last week, WIVB Channel 4 reported. The meeting and a public appearance were part of her get-out-the-vote efforts as, according to her team, Erie County had about 5,000 inactive registered democrats.

“I think Buffalo is one of the most exciting places in New York State in terms of the rejuvenation of voter mobilization and input,” Ocasio-Cortez during her appearance. “There’s inactive voters everywhere in the country, and sometimes people think, and they put that fault on the voter, but I think a lot of it sometimes is at the fault of a government that hasn’t reached out to people.”

Political analyst Carl Calabrese told Channel 4 why he thought she chose to come to Buffalo.

“I think the message under the radar screen here is to drum up support, and more importantly, enthusiasm for democrats to come out and vote, and vote for Kathy Hochul; that’s my speculation, ” Calabrese told the station. “She can kill two birds with one stone here; she can cover her Western New York base for a possible run against Schumer if that’s where she decides to go, or she can build up some goodwill amongst the Erie County Democrats that might go to the Democratic Convention in 2028 and vote for the next nominees.”

Following her Buffalo stop, she went to Ithaca and appeared at an apple festival with Democratic Rep. Josh Riley. On Sunday, she attended a “Students vs. Billionaires” town hall.

AOC had said in a recent interview with The New York Times that she would consider a presidential run after the midterms. “There’s an argument that some make that this is a very unique political window and, oftentimes in politics, you do only get one shot,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “Life doesn’t wait for you to be ready for things. Sometimes life just makes things ready for you.”

“Every element of this is something that’s within consideration,” she told the outlet. The congresswoman also addressed questions surrounding whether a Latina woman could win the presidency, pointing to the country’s history of never electing a woman as president.

“I think about my identity,” she said. “I’m not naïve to the fact that we are living under a very regressive administration, and I happen to be a woman, and I, you know, happen to be Latina,” Ocasio-Cortez said she considers those factors when thinking about a White House campaign but does not view them as making such a run impossible.

A presidential bid would carry another significant consequence. House members face elections every two years, meaning Ocasio-Cortez could not return to her congressional seat if she abandoned it to run for president and lost.

“It’s very all or nothing,” she said. “If I were to run in this cycle, and not win, I would be done.” She added that she was “not opposed” to that possibility but said a campaign would have to make the risk worthwhile.