Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said the question of her “electability” is part of her considering a 2028 presidential campaign while leaving open the possibility of running for the Senate instead.
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her → say → Senate
Ocasio-Cortez, 36, told the New York Times that she expects to decide whether to seek a Senate seat or pursue the White House after the 2026 midterm elections.
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she → tell → elections
She said she is thinking “personally” about a presidential run.
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she → say → run
“I think about it personally,” Ocasio-Cortez said when asked about a White House bid.
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Cortez → think → bid
The progressive lawmaker also acknowledged that her age, gender, and ethnicity are factors she considers when weighing a presidential campaign.
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she → acknowledge → campaign
“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 Latin,” she said.
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she → ’m → administration
“And I think that there’s a lot of conversation about electability, and I don’t kind of shy away from those realities.”
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I → think → realities
Ocasio-Cortez said the defeats of Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris, the only two women to win the Democratic presidential nomination, are also part of a broader conversation around whether a woman can win the presidency.
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woman → say → presidency
“It may or may not be related, but I absolutely empathize with the heartbreak that people feel around that and, frankly, how those women were treated,” she said.
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she → relate → that
“This country has never elected a female president,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
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Cortez → elect → president
“Why are we pretending that this is not a factor?”
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this → pretend → ?
She said she has encountered resistance to discussions about gender from both sides of the political spectrum.
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she → say → spectrum
“What is very odd about our political culture is that for some reason when you raise it, people just freak out,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
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Cortez → raise → it
“They get so defensive at the mere suggestion that gender could play a role.
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gender → get → role
“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,” she said.
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she → ’ → shot
“And you don’t — and just in life in general — life doesn’t wait for you to be ready for things.
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you → wait → things
Sometimes life just makes things ready for you.”
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things → make → you
“Every element of this is something that’s within consideration,” she added.
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she → ’ → consideration
Ocasio-Cortez could also run for the Senate seat held by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), which will be up for election in 2028.
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which → run → 2028
Schumer has not announced his plans for the seat.
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Schumer → announce → seat
“I don’t think that my decisions would come down to deference,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
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Cortez → think → deference
“My ambition is way bigger than that,” she said.
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she → say → that
“My ambition is to change this country.
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ambition → change → country
Presidents come and go, Senate, House seats, elected officials come and go, but single-payer healthcare is forever, a living wage is forever, workers’ rights are forever, women’s rights, all of that.”
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rights → come → that
Ocasio-Cortez said concerns about money and special interests also factor into her thinking about the political system.
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concerns → say → system
“I have a tremendous amount of fear over the corruption of our political system,” she said.
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she → have → system
“There’s very few people who are financially independent from special interests that are able to advocate directly for the needs of working people.
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that → ’ → people
Her ultimate consideration, she said, will be where she can have the greatest impact.
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she → say → impact
“Where can I do the most good?” she said.
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she → do → good
Ocasio-Cortez is already attracting attention in early polling of the potential 2028 Democratic field.
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Cortez → attract → field
A University of New Hampshire Survey Center poll conducted July 15-20 found her with 22% support among likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire, followed by former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg at 21%.
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poll → conduct → %
No candidates have formally launched a bid for the presidency yet.
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candidates → launch → presidency
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