AOC Not Ruling Out 2022 Primary Challenge to Schumer

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) isn’t ruling out a primary challenge against Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) next year, according to an interview that’s set to air on Aug. 9.

Schumer, 70, became majority leader when the Democratic Party gained a majority in the Senate in January and is up for reelection in 2022. He had previously served as Senate minority leader from 2017 to 2021.

When asked by CNN’s Dana Bash if she’s considering launching a primary bid for his seat, the two-term congresswoman didn’t rule out the option.

“I know it drives everybody nuts, but the way that I really feel about this and the way that I really approach my politics and my political career is that I do not look at things and I do not set my course positionally,” Ocasio-Cortez told CNN during a late June interview.

“And I know there’s a lot of people who do not believe that, but I really, I can’t operate the way that I operate and do the things that I do in politics while trying to be, aspiring to other things or calculating to other things.

“For what it’s worth, Senator Schumer and I have been working very closely on a lot of legislation and that, to me, is important. And so, we shall see.” – READ MORE