New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez played coy with reporters after learning that Vice President JD Vance believes she's the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028.
Although many voters have floated Ocasio-Cortez as a possible contender, she has yet to announce any plans to run. According to polling averages compiled by 270toWin, she ranks fourth among prospective Democratic candidates, trailing former Vice President Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom, and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Harris currently tops the polling averages. None of those political figures, including Ocasio-Cortez, have formally entered the 2028 presidential race.
But Vance, in remarks on an episode of The Michael Knowles Show released Tuesday, said he believes Ocasio-Cortez will be competing against the GOP nominee in 2028, remarking:
"I think it's got to be AOC. I know that's probably conventional wisdom."
Ocasio-Cortez didn't confirm whether she's running, but she did lick her lips and make a sly jab at Vance when she responded that she hopes he will be the Republican nominee:
"I mean, you know, I hope he [Vance] is. That's what I'll say."
You can hear what she said in the video below.
Ocasio-Cortez's remark comes as rumors continue to swirl that Vance may not run in the 2028 election after The Daily Mail, citing multiple sources, reported that Vance had become "more isolated than ever" following former intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard’s departure.
Before the war with Iran began in February, Vance was reportedly the lone senior official arguing for a more limited response rather than a broader military campaign, warning that a larger operation risked igniting a wider regional war. As Vance’s standing has diminished, the influence of Secretary of State Marco Rubio has reportedly grown.
A source told the Mail that "rumors are also circulating in the West Wing that Vance is weighing whether to step back from the 2028 race entirely as a tactical move" and that it might be better for Vance not to "own everything that's gone on in the last couple of years."
Vance's team pushed back against the Mail's reporting, telling The Independent that the publication's story was "just a flimsy compilation of completely illegitimate sources who have no idea what they're talking about." President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has not confirmed Vance has his endorsement.
Given all this, many appreciated Ocasio-Cortez's cheeky response.
A couple of months ago, when asked about her future political ambitions during an appearance at the Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago, Ocasio-Cortez was notably candid, saying her "ambition is to change this country," as she ripped a Washington Post editorial that tried to knock her down a peg for her take on the morality of billionaires.
After the publication's editorial board said Ocasio-Cortez "is arguing that there is no idea anyone can have, or company anyone can start, or value anyone can generate for others, that could possibly be worth a billion dollars," she stressed her commitment to "a living wage," "single-payer healthcare," and "workers' rights."
She dismissed these criticisms, saying she makes decisions "by waking up in the morning, looking out the window, and observing the conditions of this country, and saying, 'What move, or what decision can I make today that is going to get us closer to that future, stronger, faster, better than yesterday.'"
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