Deadline to Challenge Schumer Fast Approaching

The deadline for candidates to file for the New York Democratic primary leaves little time for a potential challenger to announce their intent to take on Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., according to the Washington Examiner.

While Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is reportedly seriously considering making a run for the senator’s seat, but has yet to make a decision, according to Politico. Other potential challengers face a similar choice before the April 7 deadline to file for the state’s Democratic primary on June 28.

"It’s dependent on what Schumer does," according to Waleed Shahid, the communications director for the progressive group Justice Democrats, which first recruited the congresswoman to run in the 2018 House election.

"Schumer will have to explain every one of his decisions to one of the most progressive primary electorates in the country, and if voters think he’s capitulating to Mitch McConnell and not organizing his caucus to deliver for working families, then he’s going to be in some trouble," Shahid told Politico.

Ocasio-Cortez's former chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, added that "it’s exciting to see how much action Schumer is currently taking. And I hope that progressives continue pressuring him, threatening a potential primary."

A spokesperson for Ocasio-Cortez told the news outlet: "The congresswoman represents one of the districts most heavily impacted by COVID and that remains her priority and focus."

David Pietrusza, historian and presidential scholar, told the Examiner that "you don’t start this thing up in three weeks," referring to the primary.

"These are radical times, and radical people do radical things, but either they're keeping it really under wraps, or they're not going to do it," he said. "Or they would be very ill-prepared."

However, he questioned whether Ocasio-Cortez would want to run for Schumer’s seat.

"Why would she do this?" he asked. "Because she has a platform already. She doesn't need a bigger microphone because every time she does something, or goes to Florida, or, you know, wears a dress, or says something, it's all over the internet, right? She doesn't need a bigger platform than what she has now."

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