Nate Silver: AOC Is Most Likely Dem Pick for 2028

Having improved her fundraising game, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is setting her sights high—presidential high, according to some onlookers.

• Taking a look at the New York Democrat's Q1 fundraising total—$9.6 million from 266,000 individual donors—former CNN correspondent Chris Cillizza sees "a presidential candidate" in the making, as he writes in his "So What" Substack, noting the total is "almost two-thirds of what she raised total in 2023 and 2024 combined."
• Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and his "35-year-old protegee" are currently headlining "the biggest political rallies anywhere in America," with tens of thousands turning up for their "Fighting Oligarchy" appearances, per the New York Times, which describes the pair of progressives as "providing the kindling" for the spark Democrats have been searching for amid a "wave of antiestablishment anger."

• Firm in their belief that the Trump administration deserves no concessions, Sanders and AOC attack a broken political system that allows the wealthy to pad their pockets at the expense of everyone else. As one rally attendee in California tells the Times, "I like that they're fighting against this oligarchy and the administration" because other Democrats "are too scared."
• There are some concerns that criticizing lawmakers on the left, as well as on the right, will lead to a break in the party, as with the Tea Party faction of the GOP. As Sanders tells the Times, "the goal is to build a grassroots movement" that will "demand that whoever represents districts in this country stands for the working class." Sanders adds, "If you have incumbent Democrats who are not prepared to do that, they're going to be challenged."
• Sanders will be 87 in November 2028, meaning he's unlikely to run for president. That opens the door for AOC, though some Democrats would prefer she instead challenge her fellow New Yorker, Sen. Chuck Schumer. The Senate minority leader, up for reelection in 2028, has drawn anger from Demorats after backing a Republican bill to avoid a government shutdown.

• That said, AOC has been moving up in very early Democratic presidential primary polls and has broad appeal across the Democratic Party, making her the likely pick for 2028, pollster Nate Silver and political reporter Galen Druke concluded Wednesday, per the Hill.
• AOC's intentions are still unclear, though she expressed gratitude to "the millions of people supporting us with your time, resources, & energy" on Tuesday, per CNBC. Meanwhile, Sanders told the Times, "I think that the future of the Democratic Party is not going to rest with the kind of leadership that we've had."

(More Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stories.)