AOC wrestles with left-wing Dems as 2028 decision looms

Why it matters: For Ocasio-Cortez, the campaign isn't just strategic — it's personal.

• In private, Ocasio-Cortez has fumed about the criticism, believing it's unfair and counterproductive for the progressive movement.
• One liberal strategist told Axios that AOC has "lamented that the left was not there for her, that they are never pleased."

Between the lines: If Ocasio-Cortez's diplomacy is successful, it could be more difficult for any potential 2028 presidential candidate to run to her left — but moderate Democrats argue it also could make it tougher for her to win a general election.

• Despite her recent efforts, some loud voices on the left — including people who have worked closely with her — have gotten under her skin by continuing to question her progressive bona fides.

Zoom in: In recent weeks, Ocasio-Cortez has tried to repair her relationship with Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

• Many members of the group opposed her support for giving Israel defensive weapons, including the Iron Dome missile system, during the war in Gaza — which she has called a "genocide."
• In July 2024, national DSA leaders withdrew their endorsement of her for the elections that year, arguing that she'd conflated "anti-Zionism with antisemitism and condemned boycotting Zionist institutions," which the group considered a "deep betrayal."
• In a virtual DSA forum last month with New York City members, AOC — who's also considering a bid for U.S. Senate in 2028 — changed her position on Israel by committing to vote against any U.S. funding to that nation, including for defensive weapons, City and State New York first reported.
• During the forum, she said her record on Israel had been distorted, which "does not benefit us as a movement."

Ocasio-Cortez's moves have satisfied some of her liberal critics.

• Many DSA members at the forum voiced approval of her shift. Daniel Denvir, host of the socialist podcast "The Dig," told Axios: "This has been a master stroke in repairing the relationship with the left — a belated master stroke, but still a master stroke."
• Last week, the DSA chapter in New York City overwhelmingly voted to endorse her for reelection, but notably had more than 500 members vote against that.
• Ocasio-Cortez's focus on the New York City chapter could signal that she's more interested in a 2028 Senate bid than president.
• A spokesperson for Ocasio-Cortez declined to comment.

The intrigue: AOC also has had a fraught relationship with some progressives who helped launch her political career.

• Her first chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, co-founded Justice Democrats, a group that helped Ocasio-Cortez with her insurgent House campaign in 2018.
• Chakrabarti is running for Congress in former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's district in San Francisco, but Ocasio-Cortez pointedly hasn't endorsed him in the June 2 primary.

She's indicated she believes that some of her early allies on the left have taken too much credit for her upset House victory eight years ago, and she's distanced herself from them over the years, people familiar with the dynamic told Axios.

• "As much as I love them, I did not win my election because of DSA. Or even [Justice Democrats]. Or any of these orgs," she told Ryan Grim for his book "The Squad."
• "We had built everything from scratch and did the hardest parts, and then when it looked appealing enough they jumped in."

Chakrabarti told Axios he was "not surprised" that Ocasio-Cortez hasn't endorsed him.

• "AOC hasn't endorsed in any races in June yet," he said. "She has her process, and I'd of course love to earn her endorsement, but it's on us candidates to make the case and show momentum in our campaigns. I hope to do that soon."

Ocasio-Cortez's former communications director Corbin Trent, another founder of Justice Democrats, is working on a book that's due out before the 2028 primary.

• He told Axios the book "is a reflection of what I've learned: the limits of individuals, and that's both Bernie and AOC, and it doesn't matter how moral or just or telegenic or stubborn they are."

Reality check: Despite the voices of dissent on the left, many progressive Democrats are pushing AOC to run for president. They believe she's the left's natural successor to Sanders, who hasn't been shy about praising her.

• Early polls for the 2028 Democratic presidential primary show AOC in the upper tier of potential candidates.
• She helped push Zohran Mamdani to victory in last year's New York City mayoral primary — a huge victory for democratic socialism and the left.