Once again, third-term House Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been opposed by the powerful Democratic Steering and Policy Committee for a prominent committee position, in favor of a more senior, establishment-oriented member of the caucus.
Last night, the committee voted 34-27 to endorse 74-year old Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) over AOC to be the ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.
Ocasio-Cortez will continue her bid to lead the committee today by seeking the support of the full House caucus. The Democrats’ committee leadership positions are officially approved by a caucus-wide vote, but the caucus typically votes to confirm the endorsements of the Steering and Policy Committee.
In announcing her candidacy for the position last week, Ocasio-Cortez said she would be focused on “both holding administrations accountable and taking on the economic precarity and inequality that is challenging the American way of life.”
Shortly after announcing, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi reportedly began working behind the scenes to sink Ocasio-Cortez’s candidacy for the job by making calls to her colleagues asking them to instead vote for Connolly, a long-time ally who supported her over the years amid contentious speakership votes.
While Ocasio-Cortez is a member of the Democrats’ progressive flank known as “The Squad,” Connolly is a member of the industry-aligned New Democrat Caucus, which endorsed him for the position.
