Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez plans to campaign across New York in the weeks before the midterm elections, and she has donated $300,000 to help boost the Democratic ticket in her home state as speculation has swirled over whether she will run for Senate or president in 2028.<\/p>\n
In an interview, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said she would be \u201ctraveling across the state to boost turnout in many different areas,\u201d including planned stops in Buffalo, Syracuse and Ithaca in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cNew York,\u201d she said, \u201chas become increasingly relevant to whether we have a majority or not in the House of Representatives.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez will donate the funds to a pool of money for Democrats statewide that is being overseen by Gov. Kathy Hochul, who is seeking re-election this year. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has earmarked the funds for voter organizing rather than advertising, with a specific proviso that half of the money be devoted to Spanish-language outreach.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis investment is really not just about throwing money around and putting points on the board,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is actually about transforming the way Democrats go about building a coalition.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarafina Chitika, a spokeswoman for Ms. Hochul, said that the statewide effort, known as a coordinated campaign because it helps candidates for various offices, would be \u201cprioritizing communities that are too often overlooked and written off.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sum is more symbolic than financially significant in a state as expansive and expensive as New York. It is also more money, though, than any other member of the New York delegation has contributed, according to two people familiar with the donation. Ms. Hochul had asked Ms. Ocasio-Cortez for the contribution, which had been under discussion for several weeks.<\/p>\n
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is one of the Democratic Party\u2019s top fund-raisers nationwide and has raised more than $32 million since the start of 2025. She entered the summer with $15 million in the bank.<\/p>\n
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, whose district includes parts of the Bronx and Queens, suggested that there should not be much reading of tea leaves into her announcement as she weighs a political future with at least three options: re-election, a New York Senate race or a presidential run in 2028.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been pretty open about the fact that I\u2019m going to be weighing this decision, but I\u2019m going to be weighing it after the midterm elections,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The fact that Ms. Ocasio-Cortez previously clashed with Jay Jacobs, the state party chairman, appears to at least partly explain why she chose to direct the money to the Hochul operation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s no secret that I\u2019ve had my criticisms about the Democratic Party in the state in the past<\/a>,\u201d Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said, adding she felt \u201cmore confident\u201d giving the money to the effort being overseen by Ms. Hochul.<\/p>\n Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said that she had not yet finalized the timing of her trips to Buffalo, Syracuse and beyond, but that she wanted to highlight the risk to rural hospitals after cuts enacted by congressional Republicans<\/a>.<\/p>\n It was unclear if Ms. Ocasio-Cortez would appear alongside other House Democrats facing re-election fights, such as Representative Josh Riley, who represents Central New York. Another New York Democrat in a swing seat, Representative Tom Suozzi, who represents Long Island, has explicitly campaigned against democratic socialists.<\/p>\n