Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., arrives at a "Fighting Oligarchy" tour event at Arizona State University, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Tempe, Arizona. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Hidalgo-Wohlleben also worked on Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign before joining former President Joe Biden's campaign in Iowa, Hidalgo-Wohlleben's LinkedIn profile revealed.
"AOC is a pretty savvy politician with a strong operation," Democratic strategist Mike Nellis told Fox News Digital. "No matter what she decides to do, they're setting her up for the future."
A Sanders alumnus himself, Nellis cautioned against placing too much weight on what it means for former Sanders staffers to lead Ocasio-Cortez's campaign.
"I think that’s just who she knows and who she trusts," Nellis, a former adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris, said, adding that Ocasio-Cortez has a "really good team around her."
"It's strategic in the sense that they have a lot of relationships already," Democratic strategist Kaivan Shroff said, while emphasizing that it can be a "mistake to keep the old guard" when you are trying to build something new.
"I don't know that somebody is going to inherit the legacy of Bernie Sanders," Shroff added.
Axios recently reported that, according to people familiar with Ocasio-Cortez's political operation, her team is positioning her to run for president or the U.S. Senate in 2028.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., greeted the crowd together during a "Fighting Oligarchy" tour event at Arizona State University, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Tempe, Arizona. (Ross D. Franklin)
Shroff said Ocasio-Cortez's "media profile and personality and charisma" aren't enough to win the presidency, especially when running against figures like California Gov. Gavin Newsom, long considered to harbor presidential aspirations.
The New Yorker sparked more campaign buzz this month for participating in an advertisement directly challenging Trump and advocating in favor of California redistricting.
Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders have both endorsed and campaigned this year for New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, a self-described Democratic socialist.
If Mamdani wins the mayoral election in November, Shroff said it could be a litmus test for the modern progressive branch of the Democratic Party.
"It will be challenging for him because I don't think he can do a lot of the things that he said, and so how soon will that leftist ideology be debunked on a national level? The sooner that happens, the worse it is for AOC," Shroff said.
In April, Ocasio-Cortez's campaign account posted a video on X that drove rumors she could be mulling a presidential run as the four-term Democrat from New York City and the progressive leader proclaimed, "We are one."
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When asked later that month if she was harboring any presidential ambitions, the young Democrat did not rule out 2028 presidential aspirations to Fox News Digital.
"Bernie and AOC, one thing they understand is that Democrats need to be more than just anti-Trump," Gorman said, before adding, "I certainly disagree with Bernie and AOC's strategy of how to lead the party and where to take America, but at least they have one. That's more than just, ‘I hate Trump.'"
The Republican strategist said the Democratic Party's "establishment is not going to be able to stop a united, far-left wing of the party this time," Gorman said.
Ocasio-Cortez's and Schumer's campaigns did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Deirdre Heavey is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/speculation-swirls-aoc-rumored-harbor-2028-aspirations-savvy-politician