Mamdani makes behind-the-scenes moves to shape 2028 Democratic presidential race

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is quietly working towards a new goal: to become a progressive kingmaker in the burgeoning battle for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.

The socialist mayor of the nation's most populous city, who can't run for president himself because he's not a natural-born U.S. citizen, has been meeting behind closed doors with labor leaders to highlight the need for a union-aligned or left-wing candidate to seek the presidency.

The mayor's moves come as he's reportedly said he's uncertain whether progressive champion Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, his close political ally, will run for the White House.

According to Axios, which was first to report the news, Mamdani is concerned that if Ocasio-Cortez stays out of the 2028 race, it could leave progressives without a standard-bearer to face off against a more centrist presidential front-runner in the primary battle.

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Mamdani, who is seen as a major powerbroker for the left-wing of the Democratic Party after his historic 2025 mayoral election victory, argues that the progressive movement can't waste their momentum coming out of last week's trouncing of Republicans in the midterm elections, as Democrats won a massive House majority and control of the Senate.

A source familiar with Mamdani's 2028 conversations told Axios the mayor "wants the progressive ecosystem to mobilize quickly, strategically and efficiently if a moderate candidate is clearly on the rise," 

Meanwhile, Ocasio-Cortez is publicly pumping the brakes on speculation she'll launch a presidential campaign or bid for the Senate in New York, even as a newly formed group of activists is urging her run for the White House.

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"I think the thing that's important here is the last thing that people want to hear from me or any other politician here is about the next election. And what they actually want to hear from us is about what we are going to do with the electoral results they just gave us on Tuesday,' Ocasio-Cortez told reporters Monday night, as she pointed to the Democrats' trouncing of Republicans in the midterms, as the party won a massive House majority and control of the Senate.

The comments from Ocasio-Cortez, who was re-elected last week to a fifth term representing parts of New York City, came hours after the formal launch of Ready for AOC, a political group working to encourage her to run for president by showing her she has legions of supporters ready to mobilize on her behalf.

"A people-powered movement asking Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to run for President in 2028. No campaign. No money. Just names," is how the group described itself on social media.

But Ocasio-Cortez said that voters are more concerned about congressional Democrats' immediate legislative agenda rather than speculating about the next election.

"I think people are less concerned about the horse race, and they want to know: What are the investigations we're going to be starting? What is the legislation that we're going to be starting?" she said.

Veteran Democratic strategist David Plouffe, campaign manager for former President Barack Obama's landmark 2008 White House victory and a senior adviser on then-Vice President Kamala Harris' 2024 bid, said last week, "If AOC runs, she's going to start, 20-25%, probably. The question is, can she add to that? If she doesn't run, then that is wide open. That's where I think someone like Abdul may say 'even though I just won, should I look at it?'"

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Plouffe, who was speaking at a forum hosted by Harvard University's Institute of Politics, was referring to Democratic Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, who made history last week as the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate.

"That's the thing about this race. It's so wide open that there may be some people run who surprise us. I also think they'll be some people who don't run who'll surprise us," Plouffe added.

Ocasio-Cortez said in September that she's weighing what to do next, whether it be a White House run or a bid for the seat currently held by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a fellow Democrat and New Yorker.

"I know there is a lot of speculation about what I will decide to do in 2028. I get asked about it nearly every interview and event," Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a fundraising email to supporters.

The now-37-year-old lawmaker with a massive social media footprint said in a New York Times interview two months ago that her decision, which could happen sometime after the midterm elections, would come down to answering the question, "Where can I do the most good?"

Schumer, who turns 76 later this month, has left his 2028 plans open and has not announced whether he’ll run for sixth six-year term in the Senate.

Ocasio-Cortez isn't the only leading figure on the left who is mulling a presidential run. So is Rep. Ro Khanna of California, a top House progressive.

Allies of the soon-to-be six-term congressman last week launched a draft committee called "Run Ro" to build support and raise funds for a potential 2028 presidential campaign.