Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has sparked speculation about a potential 2028 White House bid after a poll showed her leading a field that includes former Vice President Kamala Harris. The AtlasIntel survey placed the 36-year-old New York Democrat ahead of Harris, California Governor Gavin Newsom, and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
When asked about the poll, Ocasio-Cortez played down its significance, telling The Independent: “I don't know how much stock I put into polls like that.” This contrasts with her reaction in December to a poll showing her beating Vice President JD Vance, when she called Vance “a goober.”
Ocasio-Cortez has been active on the campaign trail, recently speaking at the University of Chicago's Institute of Politics, where she told David Axelrod: “My ambition is way bigger than that. My ambition is to change this country.” She is also set to campaign in Pennsylvania for Chris Rabb, a progressive candidate in a primary seen as a proxy battle between progressives and moderates.
Her travels have included a stop in Georgia to campaign for Ruwa Romman, where she visited Ebenezer Baptist Church and met with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s daughter Bernice. Ocasio-Cortez cited the Supreme Court's weakening of the Voting Rights Act as a reason for her involvement, calling it “an all-hands-on-deck situation.”
Next week, she will join Senator Bernie Sanders in Montana to campaign for Sam Forstag. Ocasio-Cortez emphasised the need for strong Democratic candidates, saying: “If we're going to be fighting for a Democratic majority, we need the strongest Democrats possible.”
