The future is not set
Dumfries, Virginia
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) has been campaigning furiously in the final stretch of this midterm election cycle, visiting states across the union to boost a range of candidates who hope that the charismatic congresswoman’s considerable name I.D. will help them run up the numbers against their Republican opponents.
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them → set → opponents
It’s usually helpful for a party star to campaign with others, especially in this attention economy, and Ocasio-Cortez is being a good team player here.
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Cortez → ’ → economy
But campaigning hard now also positions her well for a potential presidential bid in 2028.
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campaigning → campaign → 2028
It’s not unusual for a lawmaker with higher ambitions to travel as much as Ocasio-Cortez has done this year.
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Cortez → ’ → ambitions
Arizona’s Sen. Mark Kelly, a widely discussed potential presidential candidate from the other side of the Democratic spectrum, has ventured to twenty-three different states this cycle to promote candidates up and down the ballot.
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Kelly → discuss → ballot
For all the talk of factionalism in the Democratic party, most senior Dems are doing a good job maintaining a big tent approach, and Ocasio-Cortez’s final stop bridged the gap between the Democratic Socialists of America and the centrist New Democrat Coalition.
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stop → do → America
On Friday evening, Ocasio-Cortez showed up to a crowded auditorium in Virginia’s 7th Congressional District—which, according to nonpartisan ratings, is not in much jeopardy—to boost incumbent Democratic Rep. Eugene Vindman.
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which → show → Vindman
“We cannot simply hope that voters will return their ballots or get to the polls,” AOC said.
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AOC → hope → polls
“We gotta bring them there.
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We → got → them
And that’s why all of us have been knocking doors.
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all → ’ → doors
It’s why I myself have been touring the country.
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I → ’ → country
Virginia State Delegate Rozia Henson told me Ocasio-Cortez’s presence would likely juice Vindman’s turnout, while also shoring up the congresswoman’s favorability in the state for a theoretical primary campaign in two years.
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presence → tell → years
The DNC has scheduled Virginia to vote sixth in the 2028 Democratic presidential primaries, just before Super Tuesday.
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DNC → schedule → Tuesday
“I think it is important [that AOC is in Virginia], because in my district, I represent Route 1 all the way up to Fort Belvoir.
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I → think → Belvoir
There was some concerns with progressive voters and how they felt with [Vindman],” Henson said.
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Henson → be → Vindman
“So to have that additional voice just like AOC here, it helps shorten that narrative relating to his votes [in Congress].”
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it → have → Congress
“I thought that from the perception—her being super progressive, socialist, et cetera, et cetera—and him more on the moderate side, to see that collaboration here today makes a difference,” Henson commented.
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Henson → think → difference
Acknowledging Virginia’s newfound status as an early presidential primary state, he added, “There might be possibilities of what happens next, but we’ll see when that bridge gets here.”1
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bridge → acknowledge → state
The fact that Ocasio-Cortez is campaigning in locales home to centrist or moderate voters is a sign of the importance of progressives to the Democratic coalition, said Usamah Andrabi, communications director for Justice Democrats, a leftist organizing group.
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Andrabi → campaign → Democrats
“I think the left and progressives are leading this party forward with bold and visionary ideas that voters actually want to see us fight for,” Andrabi told me.
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Andrabi → think → me
“It makes sense that more establishment-aligned candidates are trying to align themselves with those campaigns, candidates, and issues, because they are simply what the people are demanding.
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people → make → what
Part of being in a broad coalition is making a heads-I-win-tails-you-lose bargain with the other factions.
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you → make → factions
If Democrats underperform today, progressives will blame moderates for failing to deliver the radical change that people want, while moderates will blame progressives for poisoning the party’s brand with more moderate voters.
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moderates → underperform → voters
If Democrats have lots to celebrate, the credit will shift in equal and opposite directions.
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credit → have → directions
And in that case, you can expect to see more candidates like Ocasio-Cortez barnstorming these purple-ish districts in the future.
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candidates → expect → future
“We cannot simply exist where our base already exists, right?” Andrabi added.
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Andrabi → exist → ?
“We’ve had a really successful cycle on the left, and now we have an opportunity to continue growing and organizing working-class communities in these purple and red districts in the South and across the country, because that is the future of building power for working-class communities and for the left.”
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that → have → left
Maybe so, but during Friday’s event, Ocasio-Cortez wasn’t spiking the ball for the party’s progressive wing, and actually emphasized the need for a broader appeal and even drew comparisons between herself and Abigail Spanberger, Virginia’s more centrist governor.
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Cortez → spike → herself
“In 2018, your great Governor Abigail Spanberger flipped Virginia’s 7th district.
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Governor → flip → district
Governor Spanberger and I were elected in the same class, and I had the absolute honor of serving with her,” she said.
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she → elect → her
“It is such a testament to the hard work of your community and everything you did to deliver that victory on a razor-thin margin.”
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you → do → margin
During their time in Congress, Spanberger was part of a bloc of early-career House Democrats who distanced themselves from Ocasio-Cortez and the so-called “Squad” composed of staunch progressives.
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who → distance → progressives
After the 2020 elections, Spanberger continued to deride politicians who brand themselves as far-left, an apparent shot at Ocasio-Cortez and her allies in Congress.
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who → continue → Congress
“We need to not ever use the word ‘socialist’ or ‘socialism’ ever again,” Spanberger said in 2020.
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Spanberger → need → 2020
“We lost good members because of that.”
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We → lose → that
Five years later, though, Ocasio-Cortez and Spanberger found common ground.
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Cortez → find → ground
AOC sent a fundraising appeal for Spanberger’s 2025 gubernatorial campaign, soliciting her large and powerful base to support Spanberger, whom she called “a brawler for the working class.”
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she → send → class
Virginia is a funny place for a high-profile Dem to be campaigning this late in the game—but maybe not for someone who travels as much as AOC does.
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AOC → campaign → someone
Ocasio-Cortez released a campaign memo Tuesday, highlighting her campaign stops in pivotal primary states, fundraising prowess, and heavyweight status as a coveted endorser for candidates across the country.
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Cortez → release → country
“In the coming days and weeks, much will be discussed about the future of the Democratic Party and 2028.
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much → come → Party
…and 36 more, not listed.
The Aporia
