Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said Thursday she was “very concerned” about her party members’ lack of support for New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani.
“I am very concerned about the example that is being set by anybody in our party,” Ocasio-Cortez told reporters outside of the Capitol. “I believe that we must set the example of supporting the party’s nominee, because it complicates — if an individual doesn’t want to support the party’s nominee now, it complicates their ability to ask voters to support any nominee later, whether that is mayoral, presidential, what have you.”
“And so, I think for the good of the party, we must put our differences aside and support our party’s nominee,” she added.
The New York lawmaker said she supported former President Biden after he won the primary although he was not her “preferred candidate” and noted that she backed then-Vice President Kamala Harris with full force.
“Are we a party that rallies behind our nominee or not?” Ocasio-Cortez said, seemingly frustrated by the lack of endorsements and encouragement received by Mamdani, who won the June primary and is facing two well-known independent candidates: Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Some have shied away from Mamdani, a self-declared Democratic socialist, due to his platform points — which tout city-run grocery stores, free child care and transportation for residents in the Big Apple.
Republican Rep. Andy Ogles (Tenn.) has suggested that Mamdani, a state lawmaker and immigrant from Uganda, be denaturalized for his stance on the conflict in Gaza. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called Ogles’s suggestion “disgusting.”
After Mamdani successfully captured the Democratic nomination, Schumer congratulated him for running an “impressive campaign that connected with New Yorkers about affordability, fairness, and opportunity.” However, he’s been relatively quiet regarding further support for Mamdani on the front lines.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has also been vague about advocating for Mamdani. Jeffries’s spokesperson Justin Chermol said the lawmaker met with the candidate for an hour in mid-July and said the two expected to “reconvene” again soon.
When asked about the Democratic leaders’ disposition, Ocasio-Cortez told reporters, “This isn’t about personalities, right? I think that we’re in a moment of a Trump administration. The stakes are high.”
She added, “And I want, of course, to see our party come together and stick together, despite our differences. And that’s — you know, that’s how I feel about the matter.”