Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez is one of the biggest names in Democratic politics, despite being in her early thirties. AOC’s youth and prominence fuel rampant speculation about what her future might look like. The assumption afforded to most politicians is that the person is ambitious and upwardly striving. The same is assumed of AOC; but after declaring she will not run for New York’s senate seat in 2024, AOC’s future, and her upward path, seems less clear.
Will she eventually run for Senate? Will she eventually run for president?
AOC Polarizing and Prominent
I’m not a fan of AOC.
I don’t find her all that compelling.
Her appeals to progressivism are insincere. Her appeals to identity politics are aligned with the zeitgeist but deeply counterproductive. She always, always finds a way to make herself the victim, often relying on identity politics to do so.
Usually when she speaks, I find myself questioning whether she has any idea what she’s talking about. I’ve just got this sneaking suspicion that AOC cares more about AOC than the working class.
But whatever my personal feelings, one thing is indisputable, AOC is a master of self-promotion in the modern age — which is to say, she’s got social media figured out. She might be the best in Congress, which is saying something given that national-level politicians all have the ability to self-promote sufficiently to earn a seat in Congress. AOC has built a brand more thoroughly than all the rest.
The authenticity of that brand is debatable. (She markets herself as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a bartender from Queens, but she grew up in Westchester and attended Boston University as Sandy Ocasio.)
The point is, when a politician is as prominent as AOC, and as capable at self-promotion, and has social media figured out, they’re going to have a high ceiling. Certainly her higher ceiling is higher than the House.
Where Will AOC Go Next?
Many thought AOC would challenge Kirsten Gillibrand for her Senate seat in 2024. But AOC’s spokesperson, Lauren Hitt, squashed that idea over the weekend.
“[AOC] is not planning to run for Senate in 2024. She is not planning to primary Gillibrand,” Hitt said.
So, no Senate in 2024. That likely pushes back the timeline for a presidential run, as members of the House aren’t generally considered viable presidential candidates. But who knows with AOC. She’s got a cult-like following, so maybe she’ll run sooner than later. She likely has a few decades to make a presidential run happen, though. Due t her youth, she’s not even legally eligible yet.
But what if AOC’s ultimate goal is not the presidency? AOC is also well poised to sidestep into something like having her own TV show. Maybe that’s her ultimate goal, to be something like the next Rachel Maddow. I have no idea, but maybe she just wants to be famous, and to be compensated as much as possible. Her social media behavior suggests as much.
Whatever AOC’s ultimate goal, you can expect her to be around for a while – say, another forty years. So, love her or hate her, you had better get used to her.
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Harrison Kass is the Senior Editor at 19FortyFive. An attorney, pilot, guitarist, and minor pro hockey player, Harrison joined the US Air Force as a Pilot Trainee but was medically discharged. Harrison holds a BA from Lake Forest College, a JD from the University of Oregon, and an MA from New York University. Harrison listens to Dokken.
