{"id":439,"date":"2026-05-25T19:40:44","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T19:40:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=439"},"modified":"2026-05-25T19:40:44","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T19:40:44","slug":"aoc-lays-groundwork-for-white-house-bid-while-insisting-shes-not-focused-on-presidency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=439","title":{"rendered":"AOC lays groundwork for White House bid while insisting she’s not focused on presidency"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Progressive darling Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been criss-crossing the country on a national tour, huddling with Dem powerbrokers and taking other steps that many seeking the presidency pursue \u2014 all while insisting she isn\u2019t focused on the White House.<\/p>\n

Read more Mackenzie Shirilla boasted about sickening prison nickname after she killed 2 people in crash, jailhouse lover reveals<\/a><\/p>\n

During the 2026 midterm primary season, Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has worked to boost lefty candidates in the Democratic Party, building critical connections that could come in handy next year as a 2028 decision looms. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey assume that my ambition is positional,\u201d she told famed Obama strategist David Axelrod earlier this month, ducking a question about whether she will seek the presidency.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey assume that my ambition is a title or seat, and my ambition is way bigger than that. My ambition is to change this country,\u201d she went on. \u201cPresidents come and go. Senate [and] House seats, elected officials come and go, but single-payer healthcare is forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the past month, the Bronx and Queens rep has swung through Pennsylvania, Georgia, Alabama, and more as part of her crusade to boost progressive causes.<\/p>\n

Those trips have given her the chance to workshop her messaging strategy and make inroads with key constituencies who may be valuable later on in a presidential primary.<\/p>\n

Recently, she stumped for Pennsylvania state Rep. Chris Rabb (D), a self-styled democratic socialist, in the state\u2019s 3rd Congressional District. Rabb later won the Democratic nod.<\/p>\n

Ocasio-Cortez also traveled to Montgomery, Ala. to rally for voting rights, spoke at the Ebenezer Baptist Church\u00a0in Atlanta, and fired off more endorsements in contests across America.<\/p>\n

This week, she will roll through Montana to back candidate smokejumper Sam Forstag in his congressional race.<\/p>\n

Read more Hasan Piker looks shaken on stream as feds probe Cuba trip, Rep. Jasmine Crockett piles on<\/a><\/p>\n

Last year, she began stumping with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on the \u201cFighting the Oligarchy\u201d tour aimed at lifting up progressives across the country. <\/p>\n

That has garnered speculation that she is the heir apparent to the 84-year-old Sanders in the progressive lane. Polls indicate that she could be.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s currently in fourth place among top speculated 2028 Democrats, with former Vice President Kamala Harris, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg all ahead of her in the latest RealClearPolitics polling aggregate. <\/p>\n

Earlier this year, chatter about Ocasio-Cortez seeking the presidency soured after her trip to Munich, Germany, in which she gave a word salad answer on what to do if China invades Taiwan, and<\/span> suggested that\u00a0Venezuela is below the equator.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

No one has declared their 2028 bid just yet. Typically, candidates begin announcing their plans months after the midterm elections.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe way she will evaluate the decision is really around where she believes she can make the most change,\u201d a source close to Ocasio-Cortez told Axios, claiming she is genuinely undecided about 2028.<\/p>\n

The congresswoman is also mulling a potential Senate primary bid against Chuck Schumer.<\/p>\n

Read more Florida student texted family to say she was coming home \u2014 and was killed by drunk driver minutes later<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Progressive darling Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been criss-crossing the country on a national tour, huddling with Dem powerbrokers and taking other steps that many seeking the presidency pursue, all while insisting she isn’t thinking about it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":438,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nAOC lays groundwork for White House bid while insisting she's not focused on presidency - Metro Transit Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/metrotransitreview.com\/?p=439\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"AOC lays groundwork for White House bid while insisting she's not focused on presidency - Metro Transit Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Progressive darling Rep. 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