Ocasio-Cortez backs Nixon in Florida Senate race

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday threw her support behind Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon, a democratic socialist running for U.S. Senate.

In a statement shared on social media , the New York lawmaker said Nixon would be “an exemplary fighter for the working families of Florida.”

“She did not get here by yielding to major political machines, she did it by building community power and fiercely committing to her values,” Ocasio-Cortez continued. “That’s why I’m proud to endorse her for the U.S. Senate.”

Nixon wrote in a social media post that she was “honored” by the lawmaker’s endorsement.

“AOC [Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez] is a fighter and a reminder of what’s possible when you put the needs of the people first, instead of protecting the interests of the wealthy and well-connected,” she wrote in a follow-up post . “Florida deserves, & is ready for, the kind of leadership in the U.S. Senate that has been absent for far too long.”

In Florida’s Democratic primary last month, Nixon bested Alex Vindman, a star witness during the first Trump impeachment. The win was a major victory for the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which has seen a number of its members oust establishment Democrats this primary cycle.

Nixon is up against incumbent GOP Sen. Ashley Moody (Fla.) in the general election this November. The Republican was tapped by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to replace Marco Rubio in the Senate after his nomination to lead the State Department.

Moody, who is endorsed by President Trump, has criticized Nixon for her past support of the Council on American-Islamic Relations and her DSA membership.

“I am up against probably what would be the most extreme, radical senator ever in the history of the United States in Angie Nixon,” Moody told Fox News last month.

The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election forecaster, rates the race as solid Republican. Florida voters have supported Trump in the past three presidential elections.