The AOC Endorsement Primary Enters a New Phase

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s (D-NY) primary endorsement is arguably one of the most sought after among 2020 Democratic contenders. But following her remarks criticizing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), the shadow primary hit a new phase this week, prompting contenders to grapple with the choice between defending the longtime speaker or the freshman congresswoman whose massive following they covet. 

So far, the weighing-in process has been subtle. No candidate has explicitly said they support Ocasio-Cortez’s contention that Pelosi was “outright disrespectful” for the “explicit singling out of newly elected women of color” as the freshman congresswoman told the Washington Post this week, referring to Pelosi’s dismissive comments about Ocasio-Cortez and other three other outspoken freshman women during an interview with Maureen Dowd. 

On Thursday, she doubled down.  “Well I think it’s really just pointing out a pattern, right?,” she told CNN. “We’re not talking just about progressives, it’s singling out four individuals,” she added, in reference to her progressive allies, Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA).

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has come the closet to defending AOC, sending something of a subtweet in the 29-year-old congresswoman’s defense early Thursday morning, without mentioning her by name.

“My message to young people: recognize your power as the most progressive generation in history,” Sanders tweeted. 

But perhaps more striking are a separate 2020 rival’s comments, Sen. Kamala Harris’ (D-CA), during an appearance on The Breakfast Club, where she appeared to take a side. 

“That's not my experience with Nancy Pelosi and I've known her and worked with her for years,” Harris said on the radio program. “I've known her to be very respectful of women of color and very supportive of them, so I have a different experience.”

Harris, who had not until recently been perceived as seeking Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement, recently teamed up with her to introduce legislation that would help people with criminal records obtain housing.

Neither Sanders nor Harris is expected to join Netroots Nation, a progressive conference held in Philadelphia this weekend, where Ocasio-Cortez is scheduled to speak. But despite the two senators’ lack of attendance, other 2020 candidates, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), may be expected to weigh in on the brewing debate for the first time. 

“The less they say the better,” Jim Manley, a veteran Senate aide, said about the 2020 candidates commenting on the tension. “The fact of the matter is Nancy Pelosi is the speaker of the House and they’re not,” he added about the White House hopefuls. 

So far, Sanders and Warren have made the most overt steps towards courting Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement. Each have worked with her on legislation, including capping credit card interest rates and helping to defeat climate change, one of the freshman congressman’s signature issues in her Green New Deal plan. Ocasio-Cortez has publicly praised Sanders on multiple occasions, but recently expressed support for Warren’s candidacy as well, meeting with her for lunch and appearing in a lighthearted video denouncing the finale of the popular fantasy drama series Game of Thrones. 

Ocasio-Cortez’s 2020 endorsement is sought after for a simple reason: Coming off an upset primary victory against a longtime incumbent in 2018, and equipped with 4.7 million followers on Twitter, she has become a firebrand among fans who share her grassroots-led vision for a substantially more progressive country.