A.O.C. Endorses Brad Lander in N.Y.C. Comptroller’s Race

There is little question that Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez holds extraordinary influence on New York City’s political landscape, with her endorsement carrying outsize weight, especially with the city’s economic future and political direction in flux.

So far, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has not weighed in on this year’s mayoral race. But she has decided to lend her name to support a Democratic candidate in a different citywide contest: Brad Lander, a councilman from Brooklyn who is running for comptroller.

The endorsement may solidify the progressive lane for Mr. Lander, whose path to victory in the June 22 primary became more difficult after the last-minute entrance of the City Council speaker, Corey Johnson.

“Brad understands that for government to be able to deliver the bold transformative change we need, it has to work for and with the people,” Ms. Ocasio-Cortez told The New York Times in a statement released on Tuesday.

The endorsement is a further sign that Ms. Ocasio-Cortez intends to use her influence to shape elections in New York City, mirroring a trend that has already been seen across the country.

She has endorsed several women running for Congress from Nebraska to California, but also put her name behind Tiffany Cabán, who almost scored an upset victory in the Queens district attorney’s race. She recently endorsed Jumaane D. Williams, the popular public advocate in New York City, who is expected to cruise to re-election.

Mr. Williams, whom Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has endorsed multiple times, said a nod from her is “a signal to what I’m calling the bold left, the bold progressives.”

He added: “It means people who are willing to take some political risk against what is normally established.”

Mr. Williams has yet to endorse in the comptroller contest.

Mr. Lander, a co-founder of the City Council’s progressive caucus, has said that he wants to use the office of comptroller to help New York City become more equitable as it recovers from the financial damage caused by the pandemic. He has pledged to use the powers of the office, including being the fiduciary over $248 billion in pension money, to fight climate change.

Mr. Lander has won endorsements from unions, progressive groups and politicians such as Representative Jamaal Bowman and Ms. Cabán and was recently endorsed by Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.

But to certain New York Democrats, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s backing may mean more than any of the others.

“She models better than anyone else in politics the transformative potential in making government work for everyone,” Mr. Lander said. “She is the most popular politician in New York City. Everyone wants her on their team.”

Other leading candidates running for comptroller are Brian Benjamin, a state senator representing Harlem and the Upper West Side; Zach Iscol, a nonprofit entrepreneur and former Marine who dropped out of the mayor’s race; David Weprin, a state assemblyman from Queens; Kevin Parker, a state senator from Brooklyn; and Michelle Caruso-Cabrera, a former CNBC anchor who ran in a congressional primary against Ms. Ocasio-Cortez.

On Monday, Mr. Johnson received the endorsement of Ruben Diaz Jr., the former mayoral candidate and outgoing borough president of the Bronx.

The value of Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement for Mr. Lander is not so much about fund-raising: He is already close to raising the maximum allowed to be spent in the primary under campaign finance rules. Instead, his campaign is looking to tap into her network of supporters and her facility with platforms like Instagram Live, Twitter and Twitch to gather votes and to explain ranked-choice voting and make it clear why the office of comptroller is critical to the city’s future.

In her statement endorsing Mr. Lander, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez cited his “track record of working in deep partnership with communities to ensure no one is left behind,” which is also an issue that several mayoral candidates have tried to claim as their own.

Mr. Lander did not know if Ms. Ocasio-Cortez planned to get involved in the mayor’s race, but he said he came away from his conversations with her convinced that “she is starting to look at her role in this spring’s elections more holistically.”

Bruce Gyory, a Democratic strategist who is not working for any candidate in the race, said Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement in the comptroller’s race could be a signal that she could endorse someone for mayor. “If that foreshadowing is correct and she does help make a winner in both the mayor’s race and the comptroller’s race, then she will be even more formidable,” he said.