Ted Cruz Predicts AOC Could Win 2028 Presidential Race

Republican Senator Ted Cruz has suggested that Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez could potentially win her party's presidential nomination in 2028, emphasizing that the GOP should not assume she would lose in a general election. He made these remarks while discussing the upcoming Michigan Senate race between Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and Republican Mike Rogers, arguing that a victory for El-Sayed could undermine the argument that Ocasio-Cortez is too progressive to win nationally.

Cruz warned Republicans against assuming a progressive candidate like Ocasio-Cortez would guarantee a GOP victory, pointing to the political success of Zohran Mamdani in New York City as an example of an outcome many voters once considered unlikely. Current prediction markets place Ocasio-Cortez among the leading contenders for the 2028 presidential election, with an average implied chance of around 12 percent, though early primary polling presents a more divided picture.

Cruz has not yet formally announced a 2028 presidential campaign, but his comments highlight the potential impact of the Michigan Senate race on the broader debate over progressive Democratic candidates in upcoming elections.

Brief written by urgent.news from Newsweek's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.