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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Endorse Bernie Sanders Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar to Endorse Bernie Sanders
(32 minutes later)
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, a star of the progressive left, plans to endorse Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont for the Democratic presidential nomination, Mr. Sanders’s campaign said Tuesday night. WESTERVILLE, Ohio — Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, a star of the progressive left, plans to endorse Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont for the Democratic presidential nomination at a rally this weekend, Mr. Sanders’s campaign said Tuesday night. Also on Tuesday, Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota endorsed Mr. Sanders.
Ms. Ocasio-Cortez will appear at Mr. Sanders’s “Bernie’s Back” rally in Queens on Saturday. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez will appear at Mr. Sanders’s “Bernie’s Back” rally in Queens on Saturday. Earlier Tuesday, his campaign had teased that Mr. Sanders would have a “special guest” at the event.
Earlier Tuesday, Mr. Sanders’s campaign had teased that he would have a “special guest” at his rally. The planned endorsement was first reported by The Washington Post, as the Democratic presidential candidates were wrapping up their appearances in the fourth debate of the primary season.
The planned endorsement was first reported by The Washington Post. News of the endorsement comes just two weeks after Mr. Sanders suffered a heart attack in Las Vegas. Since then, he has been recovering, first at a hospital and then at his home in Burlington, Vt.
The endorsement by Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, among the most influential and visible progressives in the country — and also one of the youngest people ever elected to Congress — will provide a much-needed boost to Mr. Sanders’s campaign. It could also serve to quell some concerns about his health and his age.
The debate on Tuesday night in Westerville, Ohio, just outside of Columbus, was Mr. Sanders’s first appearance before a national audience since his heart attack.
Mr. Sanders’s health issues have cast a degree of uncertainty over his campaign and left his aides rushing to reassure voters about his age and health, just as he was trying to improve his standing in a race that in recent weeks has become more of a two-person contest between Senator Elizabeth Warren and former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Asked about his health directly at the debate on Tuesday night, Mr. Sanders nodded to the rally and to the “special guest.”
“Let me invite you all to a major rally we’re having in Queens,” he said. “We’re going to have a special guest at that event, and we are going to be mounting a vigorous campaign all over this country.”
He also said, “I’m feeling great.”
Mr. Sanders’s campaign is billing the New York rally as his official return to the campaign trail. It had toyed with holding the rally in Prospect Park, according to an aide, but settled on a park in Queens, with a backdrop of the Manhattan skyline.
An endorsement from Ms. Ocasio-Cortez in the presidential race was highly coveted. For months, both Mr. Sanders and Ms. Warren had been jockeying for her support. In addition to being one of the country’s most prominent progressives, she has also become one of President Trump’s favorite foils.
This is a developing story and will be updated.This is a developing story and will be updated.
Matt Stevens contributed reporting.