A Behind the Scenes ‘War’ Is Underway Between Bernie Sanders Insiders: Report

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an 84-year-old socialist who caucuses with Democrats, has his own succession plan in mind.

Not all leftists, however, will defer to their patriarch on the question of who inherits his national political movement.

According to Politico, whereas Sanders appears content to bequeath his movement to Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York — commonly known as AOC — some Sanders insiders have already thrown their support behind Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California.

The differences appear to hinge on personal politics as well as the two legislators’ perceived relationships with the party establishment.

Sanders and AOC, per Politico, “share a deeply personal bond their advisers say transcends politics but remains rooted in their shared ideals.”

The movement’s patriarch, therefore, has never harbored any doubts about his successor’s identity.

“It’s always been clear that AOC is the heir,” one anonymous Sanders confidante said. “Always.”

Another anonymous Sanders confidante said that the lawmaker would be “less inclined” to endorse anyone besides AOC.

Not everyone in Sanders’ circle, however, shares his enthusiasm for the New York lawmaker.

For instance, on her podcast in May, former Sanders press secretary Briahna Joy Gray lamented the fact that many leftists would vote for longtime conservative commentator and recent Israel critic Tucker Carlson over AOC.

“I am frustrated by that dynamic because I don’t want Tucker Carlson to be president,” she said. “I also can’t see myself damaging my own credibility by telling someone to vote for AOC.”

Indeed, much of the anti-AOC sentiment among leftists comes from her coziness with the Democrat establishment.

“AOC cares so much about her colleagues, and her colleagues are establishment Democrats,” Cenk Uygur, founder of the online progressive network The Young Turks, said, per Politico.

“I don’t care about them. In fact, I’m opposed to them. I want them challenged in primaries.”

Uygur also touted Khanna’s record compared to AOC’s.

“There’s a difference between being a progressive in policies and being a progressive in action. And action requires you challenging the system, challenging the establishment. On those grounds, it’s not close. Ro Khanna is head and shoulders above every other Democrat,” Uygur said.

Last month, Vice President J.D. Vance predicted that AOC would win the Democrats’ 2028 presidential nomination.

Khanna, however, has significantly elevated his profile.

For instance, in 2025, the California progressive teamed up with Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, and now-former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, to push legislation that eventually forced the release of files pertaining to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Vance, of course, has admitted that President Donald Trump’s administration botched the release of those files.

Khanna, therefore, has some non-partisan credentials, whereas AOC struck at least one Sanders insider as an empty vessel.

“People who are supporting her are supporting her more as a brand,” the operative said. “What does it mean to work with her? What does it mean for her to pass a bill? I don’t know her theory of change.”

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