New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez welcomed NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani to Washington, D.C., on Wednesday morning for a breakfast with Congressional Democrats at the National Democratic Club.
Mamdani currently leads the polls in the race for NYC mayor, but has failed to receive endorsements from prominent establishment Democrats. AOC, along with Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), were early endorsers of Mamdani, but have failed to convince more moderate members of their party to do the same. Democrats have been split over whether they should be embracing their more progressive wing, as they flounder for a new direction and new leadership.
AOC confirmed the breakfast meeting on Tuesday, according to Fox News, telling reporters that she is excited for people to meet Mamdani and "hear what he has to say about making New York affordable for working people," which happens to include rent-freezing, government-run grocery stores, and a disdain for landlords and property owners. The congresswoman was hopeful that the face-to-face meeting would rally establishment Democrats behind Mamdani.
"I think a lot of people just need to get to know folks before they issue an endorsement," said AOC. "I hope that this conversation can be constructive to bring the party together and rally behind our nominee."
SCRAMBLED AGENDA: @AOC is rolling out the red carpet for controversial far-left NYC mayoral candidate @ZohranKMamdani, hosting a breakfast with him in DC to convince other Democrats he's just what they need to run America’s top tourist city. Why? Because he'd open city-funded… pic.twitter.com/tEijJLimci
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 16, 2025
Mamdani is specifically seeking endorsements and support from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). On Tuesday, Mamdani said: "I'm excited to go to Washington, D.C., to speak with Congressman Jeffries, to speak with Senator Schumer, to speak with leaders of our party across the country."
While no such meetings were confirmed in Washington, Senator Schumer told Fox News on Wednesday, "I spoke with him last night and will be meeting in New York City." On Monday, Representative Jeffries told reporters, "I'm scheduled to meet with the Democratic nominee at the end of the week back home in Brooklyn."
Representative Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) was the latest Democrat representative to endorse Mamdani as of last week, after backing former NY Governor Andrew Cuomo in the primary.
"We're past the primary, and the people of New York City have spoken," Espaillat said at the time. "If there is a common denominator in every decision that I've made since I began to represent this district, in terms of supporting someone, it’s called the Democratic Party."
AOC spoke to reporters on Tuesday and told them that Democrats are stronger when they are united. She is continuing to push them further to the Left.
"Zohran Mamdani is the Democratic candidate for mayor of New York City, and as a Democrat, I am rallying behind our nominee," she said.
Many Congressional Democrats attended the breakfast. Representative Ro Khanna from California, a possible 2028 presidential candidate and leading progressive lawmaker, called Mamdani "very impressive." Representative Debbie Dingell (D-MI) also attended and was impressed by the way in which Mamdani's campaign utilized social media in their strategy. Representative Jared Moskowitz told reporters he attended to learn about how to run a successful digital campaign, although he admitted he had policy disagreements with the mayoral candidate.
Meanwhile, Peter Doocy, Fox News' senior White House correspondent, asked President Trump if he had been invited to the breakfast. The President told reporters, "I'd love to be. I'd really love to go. I mean, I look forward to meeting them both."
"Look, he's a Communist," he added. "I don't think our country is ready for a Communist, but we're going to see. And I don't think that race is over yet either."
Former Governor of New York has re-entered the mayoral race as an independent after suffering a double-digit loss to Mamdani in the Democratic primary. He is currently the strongest contender to New York's communist hopeful.
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