Queens Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Maya Wiley for mayor of New York City during a press conference outside City Hall on Saturday.
“The stakes could not be higher. We can’t be playing games. We can’t be sitting on the sidelines,” AOC said during the surprise announcement. “I am putting Maya number 1.”
In her remarks, Ocasio-Cortez cited Wiley’s “experience” and a “lifetime of dedication” to social justice.
She was joined at the event by Jumaane Williams and Brad Lander, who she is backing for Public Advocate and Comptroller respectively.
The endorsement is a coup for Wiley, a former New School professor and former counsel to Mayor de Blasio, and raises the distinct possibility of energizing her progressive campaign, which has fallen behind more centrist frontrunners like Eric Adams, Andrew Yang and Kathryn Garcia.
In addition to Wiley, AOC announced the endorsement of 60 candidates running for City Council. There are only 51 Council seats up for grabs and the large number reflects the new ranked-choice voting system for the citywide Democratic primaries.
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