Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, endorsed progressive Democrat Angie Nixon in the Florida Senate race on Wednesday, weighing in on a race some Democrats hope to contest in the November midterms. Nixon, a democratic socialist, won the Democratic primary in Florida’s Senate race last month and is set to face off against Republican Senator Ashley Moody. She now has support from Ocasio-Cortez, one of the most prominent progressive lawmakers in the country.
Moody is seen as having an advantage due to Florida’s increasingly conservative lean, but Democrats hope Nixon could help their party make a comeback in the state. Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement comes as she is considered to be a potential presidential candidate for Democrats, though she has not said for sure that she plans to run for higher office. She is viewed as an heir to Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders’ progressive movement, and has used her endorsements to support other left-wing lawmakers in the midterms to reshape the Democratic Party to reflect her progressive vision.
Newsweek reached out to Ocasio-Cortez for comment via email. Ocasio-Cortez announced her support for Nixon, who currently serves as a state representative, in a post to X. She did not get here by yielding to major political machines, she did it by building community power and fiercely committing to her values.
That’s why I’m proud to endorse her for the U.S. Nixon wrote that she is “honored” to have the endorsement, praising Ocasio-Cortez as a “reminder of what's possible when you put the needs of the people first.” It’s an instance of Ocasio-Cortez jumping into a race where the Democrat is not necessarily favored. Forecasters like the Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball consider the race to be solid or safe for Republicans in November, and Moody is leading in polling.
A University of North Florida poll showed Moody with an 8-point lead over Nixon, 50 percent to 42 percent. It surveyed 848 likely voters from July 8 to 17, 2026, with a margin of error of ±3.8 percentage points. Florida Politics first reported it.
A poll from the Stetson University Center for Public Opinion Research showed Moody up 13 points, 51 percent to 38 percent. It surveyed 848 Florida adults from March 25 to April 13, 2026, and had a margin of error of ±4.1 percentage points. Nixon identifies as a democratic socialist, a tricky label in a state like Florida, which has a large concentration of Cuban Americans, a community that has generally been opposed to socialism.
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