Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has formally renewed her membership in the Democratic Socialists of America after her previous membership lapsed in 2019, a move the organization disclosed amid growing discussion about the New York congresswoman as a possible 2028 presidential candidate.
Ocasio-Cortez rejoined the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) in August 2026, according to a statement from the organization reported by NOTUS and shared with City & State New York.
“Democratic Socialists of America confirms Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a member in good standing of our organization, having recently rejoined in August 2026,” DSA said. “Previously, the representative joined DSA in 2018 with a one-year membership, which DSA’s national leadership recently noticed had lapsed, in 2019. She has since renewed her membership as of this month.”
Ocasio-Cortez originally joined DSA in 2018, the same year she defeated 10-term incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley in the Democrat primary for New York’s 14th Congressional District. Although her original membership lasted one year before lapsing in 2019, DSA continued to refer to Ocasio-Cortez as a “member” on multiple occasions during the following seven years, according to NOTUS.
The organization said discussions surrounding the next presidential election led it to publicly clarify her status.
“While it is atypical for DSA to address the membership status of individuals, ongoing discussions about the 2028 presidential campaign have prompted this release,” DSA said.
Some members of DSA have already begun considering what running a presidential candidate in 2028 could look like, the Washington Post reported earlier in August, according to NOTUS. Ocasio-Cortez is among the figures being discussed and has led some recent polling involving potential Democrat presidential candidates.
The congresswoman did not immediately respond to NOTUS’s request for comment.
The development follows a primary season in which DSA-affiliated and DSA-endorsed candidates have recorded several victories, including against incumbent Democrats.
Darializa Avila Chevalier in New York and Melat Kiros in Colorado, both DSA-endorsed, won their Democrat primaries this year, while other candidates linked to DSA have also experienced electoral successes, according to NOTUS.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s DSA-backed victory last fall raised the organization’s national profile. During his campaign, however, Mamdani sought to distinguish parts of his own platform from some of DSA’s national policy positions.
Ocasio-Cortez’s relationship with DSA has not always been uninterrupted politically in addition to the lapse in her formal membership.
DSA withdrew its endorsement of her 2024 House campaign before conditionally reinstating its support. The organization pointed to Ocasio-Cortez’s vote for a resolution that equated the “denial of Israel’s right to exist” with a form of antisemitism.
Earlier this year, Ocasio-Cortez appeared at a private DSA meeting where she said she would not authorize any military aid to Israel and referenced her record of voting “no” on the issue.
“The Israeli government should be able to finance their own weapons if they seek to arm themselves,” Ocasio-Cortez said, according to an April report from City & State New York.
Ocasio-Cortez defended democratic socialism earlier this month, saying during an appearance on ABC’s This Week that Democratic Socialists are “fundamentally pro-democracy,” “believe in the ballot box,” and believe in “respecting the outcomes of elections.” She also said DSA chapters are formed locally, comparing the New York City chapter to “your local union chapter.”
In May, Ocasio-Cortez said her ambitions go beyond running for president in 2028, telling Democrat strategist David Axelrod, “[M]y ambition is way bigger than that. My ambition is to change this country.” She added that “Presidents come and go,” but said priorities such as “single payer healthcare,” “a living wage,” “worker’s rights,” and “women’s rights” are “forever.”
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