Dem
47
GOP
53
There has been endless discussion in the media about the question: "After Trump, what?" but less about "After Bernie, what?" Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is the unquestioned leader of Team Lefty. He has run for president twice and has millions of supporters. He is also 84. Will he run for reelection in 2030, when he is 88? It's possible. Strom Thurmond was 93 when he won his final election, but at that point, he barely knew what the Senate was. Bernie is too committed to his movement to let that happen. He will throw in the towel when he realizes he can't lead anymore. So our guess is that he probably won't run in 2030, especially if the governor of Vermont is a Republican. Sooner or later, someone else is going to have to carry the baton.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) might be a suitable replacement as the leader of the movement, were it not for her age. She is 77. Also, she isn't as fiery as he is and isn't as good as working crowds into a frenzy. Her strength is actually legislating. If the Democrats get the trifecta in 2029, she will be too busy writing bills to have time to run a movement.
Nevertheless, the succession struggle is already on. The main contestants are Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). They have different strategies. Khanna goes everywhere. He never stands still. If any Democrat, anywhere, wants him, he goes there and does his best working crowds, raising money, whatever is needed. He has won a lot of friends that way. Every Democrat knows they can count on him. This also gives him many contacts for an expected potential 2028 presidential run.
AOC is different. She doesn't do that. She is also more selective about endorsements, even for progressive candidates. Like Donald Trump, she cares about her batting average. Some progressives find her too cautious. Her caution kept her from endorsing Graham Platner, something Khanna wholeheartedly did and now regrets. Both of them supported Abdul El-Sayed, but in different ways. Khanna helped El-Sayed raise money. AOC actually stumped with the candidate.
If Khanna runs for president in 2028 (likely) and AOC does not (because she decided to run for the Senate), that does not automatically make him the next Bernie, especially if the original Bernie is very much alive and active.
Insiders say that Sanders and AOC share a deep personal bond. They have held rallies together many times and they clearly like each other a lot. It is more than ideology. They are now also working together on legislation addressing AI. They want to slow down the construction of data centers. That is a very smart issue to own as the majority of voters in both parties want that. It is going to be a big issue in 2026 and an even bigger one in 2028.
Khanna's big issue is getting all the Epstein files out there and helping the victims. Neither Sanders nor AOC have been leading that battle.
Most people close to Sanders think AOC is the heir apparent. It's more than just policy. It is also who he thinks can rouse crowds. AOC has proven she can do that. Also, Democrats want change and a 36-year-old woman of color is a bigger change than a 49-year-old man, even if he is also a person of color.
Also, this is a situation in which money could play a role, but it cuts both ways. Khanna and his wife have a net worth of about $233 million, making him one of the wealthiest members of Congress and the second wealthiest from California, after Darrell Issa, whose $282 million fortune came from those annoying car alarms. Khanna's money comes from his wife's father, Monte Ahuja, who is a wealthy automotive parts executive. This money could allow Khanna to self-fund early 2028 primaries. On the other hand, many Democrats will have a lot of trouble trusting a guy worth north of $200 million to take on the billionaires. In contrast, AOC's net worth is $49,000. She is proletariat-adjacent. No one doubts her willingness to tackle the billionaire problem. (V)