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An eternity stretches between now and any real moves in the Democratic Party’s next presidential nominating contest. But the early jockeying has started drawing donors’ imaginations, and so far, two charismatic leaders from the next generation of Democrats have emerged as figures to watch.
Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, whose recent marathon floor speech was hailed by peers and party activists alike as a turning point in the Democrats’ fight against President Donald Trump, has raked in $16 million since his 2020 re-election, putting him second only to Senator Jon Ossoff among Democrats running for re-election this cycle. While Booker’s haul is only a little more than half of Ossoff’s, the Georgian is Republicans’ top target for 2026 Senate races, while Booker’s seat is considered a safe one.
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Booker’s hefty fundraising tally came before he staged a record-breaking, 25-hour speech on the Senate floor that could be viewed as a less-than-subtle starting gun for a 2028 campaign. The spectacle started just hours before the fundraising quarter closed, so Booker’s $1 million start to the year is missing from the $12.4 million he has on hand heading into what is anticipated to be an easy re-election bid next year.
Read More: Cory Booker Reminds Democrats What Fighting Back Looks Like.
Another Democratic fundraising standout who could come into play for higher office was Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The 35-year-old New Yorker, whose district includes parts of the Bronx and Queens, has collected $9.6 million through the end of March, according to financial reports filed Tuesday. Among House candidates, Ocasio-Cortez ranks behind only Gay Valimont, a gun-safety advocate who earlier this month fell short in her bid for a Florida House seat vacated by Republican Matt Gaetz. Ocasio-Cortez has been touring the country with Sen. Bernie Sanders, drawing enormous crowds and huge numbers of low-dollar donors as she cements her status as a progressive star.
It’s possible that both Booker and Ocasio-Cortez will ultimately take a pass on 2028. Booker’s 2020 bid for the presidential nomination failed to gain traction, and he dropped out before the first votes were even cast. Ocasio-Cortez, meanwhile, just cleared the age-minimum bar for qualifying for President, and many in New York are waiting to see if she chases that path or if she runs for the Senate seat currently held by Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is up for potential re-election in 2028.
Read More: Inside Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Unlikely Rise.
But a party trying to figure out its identity amid a second Trump era will surely see a crowded field of hopefuls. The list could include the likes of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, among many others.
Despite that group, it’s worth watching Booker's and AOC's coffers. A dollar raised for the House or Senate can become instant seed money for a White House run, whereas money raised for state-office campaigns is a trickier conversion. Money is a big part of any ambitious politician’s decision about their political future. Booker’s struggles with fundraising in his first bid for the White House helped usher him out of the race. Ocasio-Cortez, on the other hand, began her career by sparking a small-dollar revolution that toppled a longtime incumbent who was being groomed to maybe take over House Democrats’ operations.
If the pair keeps this up—and spreads some of that cash around to help on-the-margin incumbents or rising insurgents—they just might be the pace-setters for the Democrats heading forward.
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