Left-wing streamer Hasan Piker said he would campaign for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez if she seeks the presidency in 2028, revealing that he has already spoken with the New York Democrat and members of her team.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Left-wing political streamer Hasan Piker says he is prepared to campaign for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., if she enters the 2028 presidential race, adding another prominent online voice to the continuing speculation surrounding the congresswoman’s political future.
Piker discussed Ocasio-Cortez during a recent episode of “The Axios Show,” saying he considers her a potential presidential candidate and has communicated with both the congresswoman and members of her political team, Axios reported Friday.
“I think AOC would be a good candidate,” Piker said.
Asked whether he would personally campaign for Ocasio-Cortez if she sought the White House, Piker responded without hesitation.
“Oh, absolutely. Yes. What goes on behind the scenes in the Democratic Party and what gets talked about is entirely different, I think, in many respects,” he said.
Axios reported that Piker has millions of online followers and has become a campaign surrogate for several candidates on the political left. His comments about Ocasio-Cortez came during an hourlong interview examining his political views and increasingly visible role in Democratic politics.
Ocasio-Cortez has not announced a 2028 presidential campaign, although questions about whether she could seek higher office have followed her throughout 2026.
Reports earlier this year described progressive Democrats encouraging her to consider a presidential bid. Ocasio-Cortez herself addressed the speculation during a May discussion with Democratic strategist David Axelrod at the University of Chicago, but did not commit to pursuing a particular office.
Her answer instead focused on the policies she wants to advance and her view that political office is a means rather than the central objective of her career.
“You know, it’s funny because in this op-ed that Jeff Bezos paid for in The Washington Post, there was this line you had mentioned earlier about, well ‘as a potential 2028 contender,’ XYZ, and in the context of that, it was very clear this was a veiled threat, right? It was the elite saying, ‘If you want this job, you just stepped out of line, and we want you to know where the real power is. It’s in the modern-day barons who own the Post and own the algorithms, and we’re gonna… we’ll make an example out of you.’
“What’s funny about that is that they assume that my ambition is positional. They assume that my ambition is a title or a seat. And my ambition is way bigger than that. My ambition is to change this country. Presidents come and go, Senate, House seats, elected officials, come and go but single payer healthcare is forever, a living wage is forever, workers’ rights are forever, women’s rights, all that.”
Axelrod had raised both a possible presidential run and the possibility of Ocasio-Cortez seeking a Senate seat. Her answer did not rule out either option and emphasized that she would make future political decisions based on what she believes would most effectively advance her policy goals.
Piker’s willingness to become involved in a potential Ocasio-Cortez campaign comes as his own political profile has expanded — and as some of his statements have generated controversy within Democratic politics.
Axios reported that Piker traveled to China in 2025 and has said China represents the government model closest to what he would like to see adopted in the United States. During the Axios interview, he also defended aspects of Mao Zedong’s historical legacy while acknowledging deaths caused by famine and government mismanagement under Mao.
Asked about Mao, Piker told Axios that “he’s a great man of history. Of course, there were a lot of excesses.”
When pressed about what he meant by “excesses,” he answered, “Deaths borne out of mismanagement and famine.”
Piker has also appeared publicly wearing clothing styled after the Mao suit.
His comments on U.S. foreign policy have generated additional criticism.
In another portion of his Axios interview, Piker was asked whether he believed the United States was worse than al-Qaeda when comparing acts he considers terrorism.
“Pound-for-pound, as far as the number of deaths, yes,” Piker said, adding, “We have caused tremendous terror all around the world.”
Piker based that argument on his assessment of deaths resulting from American military operations and foreign policy, including civilian casualties in the Middle East. His characterization is his political judgment and is disputed by critics.
His rhetoric has already affected his relationship with some Democratic candidates.
Axios reported that Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, previously campaigned with Piker during the primary but publicly disagreed with Piker’s comparison of the United States and al-Qaeda. El-Sayed said Piker does not speak for his campaign and will not campaign with him during the closing weeks before the Nov. 3 election.
Piker has defended his broader political commentary by arguing that provocative remarks are frequently removed from their original context.
During the Axios interview, he was also questioned about previous statements involving political violence. Piker said he consistently advocates political organizing, labor action and work stoppages rather than violence as methods for achieving political objectives.
His political worldview nevertheless places him within a part of the American left that advocates substantial changes to the country’s economic and political systems.
Ocasio-Cortez is herself a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and has made policies including single-payer health care, higher wages and strengthened labor rights central to her political agenda.
Her May remarks to Axelrod emphasized those priorities rather than a specific 2028 campaign.
“My ambition is way bigger than that,” Ocasio-Cortez said of assumptions that she was primarily seeking another political title. “My ambition is to change this country.”
Piker’s Friday comments demonstrate that if she ultimately chooses a presidential campaign, he wants to take an active role.
For now, however, the prospect remains hypothetical: Ocasio-Cortez has not announced a presidential candidacy, while Piker has publicly made clear what he would do if she does.
“Oh, absolutely,” he said when asked whether he would campaign for her.
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