Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez thought she was just backing another progressive candidate.
But her endorsement just paid off in ways she never imagined.
And AOC never saw this earth-shattering victory coming that changes everything for 2028.
Socialist shock wave rocks New York City
The political establishment got blindsided Tuesday night when 33-year-old democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani crushed former Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York City’s Democrat mayoral primary.
Mamdani, a relatively unknown state Assembly member from Queens, stunned the political world with his apparent defeat of the moderate Cuomo in the Democratic primary to replace Mayor Eric Adams.
Late Tuesday, Mamdani led the first-choice vote count with about 43.5% support, followed by about 36% for Cuomo.
Cuomo, a thrice-elected Democrat, got the backing of establishment party members, like South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn and former President Bill Clinton — but still lagged behind Mamdani by 7 points in the ranked-choice voting contest.
But Mamdani had something even more powerful – the full-throated endorsement of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Mamdani secured endorsements from two of the country’s foremost socialists, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders.
AOC’s presidential odds just went through the roof
Political insiders are now buzzing about what this means for AOC’s 2028 presidential ambitions.
Political insiders are buzzing about what AOC’s endorsement of the winning candidate means for her future ambitions.
Many observers believe the lefty “Squad” member will use this victory as a launching pad for higher office — whether challenging for the Senate or even making a White House run — after backing the right horse in this major upset.
Corbin Trent, AOC’s former spokesperson, told The Post that the victory “just continues to open more doors” and “just broadens her horizons.”
The 35-year-old Bronx and Queens congresswoman was the most high-profile Democrat to back Mamdani when he was widely seen as the underdog against the three-time elected governor.
Mamdani’s shocking victory “gives her a little bit of a national victory, more national attention for going in the right direction and backing the right horse,” he added.
The socialist blueprint for 2028
Democrat operatives and aides are now saying that AOC will see the socialist’s win as proof that her style of grassroots, progressive politicking could triumph in the next presidential contest.
Democrat strategists and aides believe AOC will view the socialist’s victory as validation that her brand of grassroots, progressive politics can succeed in major elections.
The parallels to AOC’s own political rise are impossible to ignore.
The parallels to AOC’s own rise are striking — nearly seven years ago, she shocked the political world by defeating established House Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. Joe Crowley (D-NY) in a 2018 primary that nobody saw coming.
Now the big question is whether she’ll challenge Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer or go straight for the White House.
The core question facing AOC is whether she’ll challenge Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer or make a direct play for the presidency, a decade after her meteoric rise from bartender to congresswoman.
The Chuck Schumer problem
Multiple polls have shown AOC could beat Schumer in a 2028 Democrat primary.
Multiple polls have since found her beating him, should she choose to run against him.
Schumer drew wrath from the progressive base in March when he declined to block a GOP bill to prevent a partial government shutdown.
AOC was one of the leading voices pushing for a shutdown showdown, putting her at odds with the Senate minority leader.
Top GOP voices in New York believe a collision between Schumer and AOC is inevitable.
“Tonight’s biggest winner is [Ocasio-Cortez]. [Schumer] is cooked in a Democratic primary in 2028,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) mused Tuesday evening, re-upping his longstanding prognostication.
Republicans see the writing on the wall
Republicans are practically begging for AOC to run for president.
“The Democrat Party should stop wasting time, just crown AOC the 2028 nominee now! She’s a foreign policy mastermind, her legislative wins are too many to count, and she clearly speaks for Democrat leadership,” Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) said on X after Mamdani’s victory, noting his account wasn’t hacked.
The Texas congressman continued his sarcastic endorsement: “This is the candidate who can unite climate alarmists, people who think economics is a vibe, and believe that we’re all just citizens of the world. Run AOC, Run!”
Republicans are salivating at the prospect of running against a socialist ticket in 2028.
But the democratic socialist’s win is also exciting Republicans who will have plenty of “fodder” — such as Mamdani’s pie-in-the-sky plans for government-run grocery stores and his anti-police and anti-Israel rhetoric.
Those radical policies will be tough for Democrats to navigate between now and the 2026 midterms, according to party insiders.
The 2028 race takes shape
Around the time that Cuomo conceded to Mamdani, Ocasio-Cortez’s odds of clinching the Democratic nomination in 2028 spiked dramatically on betting markets.
The Democrat primary is wide open, with the party still struggling to recover from its 2024 drubbing.
The Democrat primary landscape for 2028 remains wide open, with the party still reeling from its comprehensive defeat in 2024.
If AOC were to run and win, she would make history.
Should she run and win the presidency, AOC would shatter barriers as both the first female and youngest person in U.S. history to hold the office.
Trent, who knows AOC better than most, called her the “Michael Jordan” of political messaging and said there’s “no question about that” when it comes to her communication skills.
What comes next
The Mamdani victory has given AOC a powerful proof of concept that socialist candidates can win major races in America.
Mamdani’s campaign centered on kitchen-table economics that connect with working families – pushing for rent freezes, free public transit, and even government-operated grocery stores.
The Democrat ran on an agenda for free buses, health care and more affordable housing which gained traction with voters.
Mamdani had been surging in the race’s final weeks as he touted a progressive vision for a new direction for the city — one with rent freezes and city-run grocery stores price caps, free city buses and more.
The question now is whether AOC will use this momentum to launch her own national campaign in 2028.
She has the endorsement power, the fundraising ability, and now the proof that socialist policies can win major elections.
The only question is whether she’ll challenge Schumer first or go straight for the White House.
Either way, AOC’s 2028 presidential dreams just got a massive boost from an unlikely source – a 33-year-old socialist from Queens who just pulled off the political upset of the year.
