The chairman of the New York Democrat Party has warned Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) not to challenge Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in the 2022 Democrat primary.
Jay Jacobs, who served as the Democrat Party’s chairman for the Empire State from 2009 to 2012 and returned to the post in 2019, told the New York Post he believes a primary run against Schumer from Ocasio-Cortez would be driven by “ambition rather than need.”
“I think it would be a primary driven by ambition more than by need,” Jacobs said. “Chuck Schumer has been a progressive force in the state for decades. She has a constituency that admires her and supports her, and they’re in her community, and I think it would be a loss for them if she were to do that.”
Jacobs conitnued his remarks with the Post by saying that Ocasio-Cortez would “absolutley” be defeated by Schumer.
“We’ve never met. I would look forward to doing that,” Jacobs said of Ocasio-Cortez. “I am open to that at any time.”
Rumors of an Ocasio-Cortez primary run against Schumer have circled for some time. Asked earlier this year whether she would challenge Schumer, Ocasio-Cortez responded, “I don’t know.”
Ocasio-Cortez also spoke with Vanity Fair in October and suggested that she does not “know if I’m really going to be staying in the House forever.”
A native of the Bronx, Ocasio-Cortez has fought for new leadership in the Democrat Party. Earlier this month, Ocasio-Cortez undermined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Schumer when she said, “We need new leadership in the Democratic Party.”
In February, President Donald Trump said that Ocasio-Cortez would “kick his ass” if she ran against Schumer.
Follow Kyle on Twitter @RealKyleMorris and Facebook.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.