Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigned for U.S. House candidate Nina Turner--known for her go-to greeting, "Hello somebody!"--in Ohio's 11th Congressional District on Saturday. (Photo: Nina Turner/Twitter)
Jul 25, 2021
In a congressional primary race that's been framed as part of a broader battle for the future of the Democratic Party, Nina Turner has won not only an endorsement but on-the-ground support from one of the most high-profile progressives in the U.S. House of Representatives: Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) was in Cleveland on Saturday to campaign for Turner, a former member of the city's council as well as the Ohio state Senate. More recently, Turner served as a national co-chair for the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is also backing her bid to represent Ohio's 11th Congressional District.
"This isn't about Nina versus any opponent; this is about the people versus big money," Ocasio-Cortez said at a Saturday event. "This is a deep blue seat. It's a deep blue seat. Districts like Ohio's 11th should be leading the country on issues. They are opportunities, they are very rare opportunities, very rare districts like this one that can take and be visionary."
\u201cRain or shine we are out here knocking doors, organizing our neighbors and working hard to earn the ultimate endorsement \u2014 that of Ohio\u2019s working people. We\u2019ve got a full day left of canvassing, phone banking and community meetings. Thank you Congresswoman @AOC.\n\nPa\u2019lante! \u270a\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627150534
Asked why she endorsed Turner, Ocasio-Cortez told the local 3News, "I think it's extremely clear that Nina Turner is the candidate in this race that answers to the people of Ohio first and foremost."
"She has supported, she has worked in this community, she has served in this community, and she understands this community's needs, and she is a candidate that I think can be trusted to bring people's voices to Washington," the congresswoman added.
\u201cRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigns for Nina Turner in Cleveland, praises Indians name change to Guardians https://t.co/7WViztWZ1r\u201d— WKYC 3News (@WKYC 3News) 1627160700
While early voting started more than two weeks ago for the crowded primary with 13 candidates, Turner's main opponent is Shontel Brown, who chairs the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party and serves on the county's council. Brown has been endorsed by key establishment figures including Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the majority whip.
On Saturday, as Brown canvassed on Cleveland's West Side, Turner and her supporters also knocked on doors in the city and suburban Cleveland Heights.
"Canvasses are where the fight gets won," Ocasio-Cortez said at a launch event. "Right here, this is where the work happens and I love being where the work happens--where we actually get our hands dirty in the work of knocking on our doors and having conversations with our neighbors and building actual community. There's no replacement for that."
\u201cWe\u2019re putting in the sweat equity: knocking doors, making calls and meeting w/ every part of our community. Person to person, one conversation at a time.\n\nWe\u2019re building something special. Not just for us, but for future generations.\n\nThank you sister @AOC! Cleveland loves you \u270a\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627167768
"We're knocking on doors that have never been knocked," Turner tweeted Sunday. "Ohioans who've been left behind and excluded from the democratic process."
"Young folks. Black and Brown folks. Working-class folks. They're not hard to reach--they're hardly reached," she continued. "It's time to expand the electorate."
\u201cBig Pharma, Big Banks, and Big Oil know that when I'm elected, they've got trouble on their hands. \n\nThat's why they're spending an unprecedented amount of money in this district.\n\nWe've got them shaking in their boots. Well, in the words of my sister @AOC:\n\nLet them shake.\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627181165
Another nationally known progressive in Congress is planning to visit Ohio to support Turner next week. Sanders is set to travel to Cleveland and deliver a keynote speech at a get-out-the-vote rally for the candidate on July 31.
Sanders, who endorsed Turner the same day she formally announced her candidacy in December, has said that "she deeply cares for working families and she has the heart to be an effective, unwavering fighter for them in Congress."
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In a congressional primary race that's been framed as part of a broader battle for the future of the Democratic Party, Nina Turner has won not only an endorsement but on-the-ground support from one of the most high-profile progressives in the U.S. House of Representatives: Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) was in Cleveland on Saturday to campaign for Turner, a former member of the city's council as well as the Ohio state Senate. More recently, Turner served as a national co-chair for the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is also backing her bid to represent Ohio's 11th Congressional District.
"This isn't about Nina versus any opponent; this is about the people versus big money," Ocasio-Cortez said at a Saturday event. "This is a deep blue seat. It's a deep blue seat. Districts like Ohio's 11th should be leading the country on issues. They are opportunities, they are very rare opportunities, very rare districts like this one that can take and be visionary."
\u201cRain or shine we are out here knocking doors, organizing our neighbors and working hard to earn the ultimate endorsement \u2014 that of Ohio\u2019s working people. We\u2019ve got a full day left of canvassing, phone banking and community meetings. Thank you Congresswoman @AOC.\n\nPa\u2019lante! \u270a\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627150534
Asked why she endorsed Turner, Ocasio-Cortez told the local 3News, "I think it's extremely clear that Nina Turner is the candidate in this race that answers to the people of Ohio first and foremost."
"She has supported, she has worked in this community, she has served in this community, and she understands this community's needs, and she is a candidate that I think can be trusted to bring people's voices to Washington," the congresswoman added.
\u201cRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigns for Nina Turner in Cleveland, praises Indians name change to Guardians https://t.co/7WViztWZ1r\u201d— WKYC 3News (@WKYC 3News) 1627160700
While early voting started more than two weeks ago for the crowded primary with 13 candidates, Turner's main opponent is Shontel Brown, who chairs the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party and serves on the county's council. Brown has been endorsed by key establishment figures including Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the majority whip.
On Saturday, as Brown canvassed on Cleveland's West Side, Turner and her supporters also knocked on doors in the city and suburban Cleveland Heights.
"Canvasses are where the fight gets won," Ocasio-Cortez said at a launch event. "Right here, this is where the work happens and I love being where the work happens--where we actually get our hands dirty in the work of knocking on our doors and having conversations with our neighbors and building actual community. There's no replacement for that."
\u201cWe\u2019re putting in the sweat equity: knocking doors, making calls and meeting w/ every part of our community. Person to person, one conversation at a time.\n\nWe\u2019re building something special. Not just for us, but for future generations.\n\nThank you sister @AOC! Cleveland loves you \u270a\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627167768
"We're knocking on doors that have never been knocked," Turner tweeted Sunday. "Ohioans who've been left behind and excluded from the democratic process."
"Young folks. Black and Brown folks. Working-class folks. They're not hard to reach--they're hardly reached," she continued. "It's time to expand the electorate."
\u201cBig Pharma, Big Banks, and Big Oil know that when I'm elected, they've got trouble on their hands. \n\nThat's why they're spending an unprecedented amount of money in this district.\n\nWe've got them shaking in their boots. Well, in the words of my sister @AOC:\n\nLet them shake.\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627181165
Another nationally known progressive in Congress is planning to visit Ohio to support Turner next week. Sanders is set to travel to Cleveland and deliver a keynote speech at a get-out-the-vote rally for the candidate on July 31.
Sanders, who endorsed Turner the same day she formally announced her candidacy in December, has said that "she deeply cares for working families and she has the heart to be an effective, unwavering fighter for them in Congress."
In a congressional primary race that's been framed as part of a broader battle for the future of the Democratic Party, Nina Turner has won not only an endorsement but on-the-ground support from one of the most high-profile progressives in the U.S. House of Representatives: Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) was in Cleveland on Saturday to campaign for Turner, a former member of the city's council as well as the Ohio state Senate. More recently, Turner served as a national co-chair for the 2020 presidential campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is also backing her bid to represent Ohio's 11th Congressional District.
"This isn't about Nina versus any opponent; this is about the people versus big money," Ocasio-Cortez said at a Saturday event. "This is a deep blue seat. It's a deep blue seat. Districts like Ohio's 11th should be leading the country on issues. They are opportunities, they are very rare opportunities, very rare districts like this one that can take and be visionary."
\u201cRain or shine we are out here knocking doors, organizing our neighbors and working hard to earn the ultimate endorsement \u2014 that of Ohio\u2019s working people. We\u2019ve got a full day left of canvassing, phone banking and community meetings. Thank you Congresswoman @AOC.\n\nPa\u2019lante! \u270a\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627150534
Asked why she endorsed Turner, Ocasio-Cortez told the local 3News, "I think it's extremely clear that Nina Turner is the candidate in this race that answers to the people of Ohio first and foremost."
"She has supported, she has worked in this community, she has served in this community, and she understands this community's needs, and she is a candidate that I think can be trusted to bring people's voices to Washington," the congresswoman added.
\u201cRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigns for Nina Turner in Cleveland, praises Indians name change to Guardians https://t.co/7WViztWZ1r\u201d— WKYC 3News (@WKYC 3News) 1627160700
While early voting started more than two weeks ago for the crowded primary with 13 candidates, Turner's main opponent is Shontel Brown, who chairs the Cuyahoga County Democratic Party and serves on the county's council. Brown has been endorsed by key establishment figures including Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), the majority whip.
On Saturday, as Brown canvassed on Cleveland's West Side, Turner and her supporters also knocked on doors in the city and suburban Cleveland Heights.
"Canvasses are where the fight gets won," Ocasio-Cortez said at a launch event. "Right here, this is where the work happens and I love being where the work happens--where we actually get our hands dirty in the work of knocking on our doors and having conversations with our neighbors and building actual community. There's no replacement for that."
\u201cWe\u2019re putting in the sweat equity: knocking doors, making calls and meeting w/ every part of our community. Person to person, one conversation at a time.\n\nWe\u2019re building something special. Not just for us, but for future generations.\n\nThank you sister @AOC! Cleveland loves you \u270a\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627167768
"We're knocking on doors that have never been knocked," Turner tweeted Sunday. "Ohioans who've been left behind and excluded from the democratic process."
"Young folks. Black and Brown folks. Working-class folks. They're not hard to reach--they're hardly reached," she continued. "It's time to expand the electorate."
\u201cBig Pharma, Big Banks, and Big Oil know that when I'm elected, they've got trouble on their hands. \n\nThat's why they're spending an unprecedented amount of money in this district.\n\nWe've got them shaking in their boots. Well, in the words of my sister @AOC:\n\nLet them shake.\u201d— Nina Turner (@Nina Turner) 1627181165
Another nationally known progressive in Congress is planning to visit Ohio to support Turner next week. Sanders is set to travel to Cleveland and deliver a keynote speech at a get-out-the-vote rally for the candidate on July 31.
Sanders, who endorsed Turner the same day she formally announced her candidacy in December, has said that "she deeply cares for working families and she has the heart to be an effective, unwavering fighter for them in Congress."
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