How a Vance, AOC White House race would heat up simmering rivalry

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Vice President JD Vance are some of the most notable politicians in their parties, on completely different sides of the aisle.

And the two have made that contrast clear with their public back-and-forth over the years.

The pair's thoughts on each other have renewed interest, however, after the VP said he saw the congresswoman as a frontrunner for the Democratic party in the next presidential election.

Here's the latest, and a look back on their other public disagreements.

Vance claims AOC will be leading Democratic candidate, congresswoman responds

In a recent interview on The Michael Knowles Show, Vance said he thought Ocasio-Cortez would be the leading candidate for the Democratic Party on the 2028 ticket.

"I know that's probably conventional wisdom," he said.

In response to Vance's answer, AOC told reporters that she hopes he is a nominee, too. Vance is considered one of the potential frontrunners for the Republican nomination in 2028.

When asked about her response, Vance said that "we can worry about the future when the future comes."

AOC has caused a stir over whether or not she plans to run in the next presidential election. In May, the 36-year-old did not immediately shut out the idea of running next election, whether that be for a Senate seat or the White House.

"They assume that my ambition is a title or a seat," Ocasio-Cortez said. "And my ambition is way bigger than that. My ambition is to change this country."

AOC, Vance and a history of disagreements

The 2028 election could see the pair face off in a race for the top office in the country if they end up as the nominees for their respective parties,

Late last year, the congresswoman directly acknowledged the possibility by reposting a tweet claiming that she led Vance in a poll for 2028.

"Bloop," Ocasio-Cortez said.

When asked about the matchup, AOC told a reporter, laughing: "Listen, these polls, like three years out, are, you know, they are what they are. But let the record show: I would stomp him. I would stomp him!"

She also sharply criticized the vice president after resident Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by ICE agents deployed in Minneapolis earlier this year.

"I understand that Vice President Vance believes that shooting a young mother of three in the face three times is an acceptable America that he wants to live in, and I do not," she said at the time, according to The Hill.

"And that is a fundamental difference between Vice President Vance and I. I do not believe that the American people should be assassinated in the street."

Vance has expressed his own gripes with AOC.

"President AOC, the stuff of nightmares," Vance said in an interview last May.

"Thank you, you've ruined my sleep for this evening."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How a Vance, AOC White House race would heat up simmering rivalry

Reporting by Amethyst Martinez, USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect

This story was originally published July 2, 2026 at 10:27 AM.