(NewsNation) — David Hogg, a survivor of the Parkland school shooting in 2018, gun-control activist and now vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, confirmed he has a list of more than a dozen incumbents that he and his organization, “Leaders We Deserve,” are looking at to possibly primary in the next election.
One congressmember likely not on that list is Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. Hogg told NewsNation first that he would endorse her for chair of the Oversight Committee if she runs for the position. This comes after Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., announced Monday that he will not seek reelection since he’s battling cancer again. Hogg said he thinks Ocasio-Cortez “would be an excellent leader.”
But there are some Democrats that Hogg does not believe are fighting hard enough against the Trump administration and the actions Hogg lists as “eviscerating our economy, eroding the foundations of our democracy and literally disappearing people.”
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“Currently, we’re looking at over 12 districts, but there’s a lot of nuance that comes with that number, because there’s going to be people who retire.” Hogg emphasized the number is fluid and said that if they can’t find a young person to run against one of these incumbents, they won’t run someone.
Hogg said that while his goal is to find the best of his generation to support and that the candidates will be younger, his focus is on “effectiveness rather than age,” noting “there are really effective people that are older, there are really effective people that are younger, and there are really ineffective people of all ages.”
But the barometer for who is effective enough, or not, seems a bit amorphous. Hogg said it looks different for each district but they’re looking at effectiveness and integrity, making sure that members “are the best representatives that they can be for their districts … that their constituents don’t feel like there’s conflicts of interest” and that effectiveness will look different in a rural area versus somebody who’s in an urban center.
He was unequivocal, however, about some members: “We will not challenge somebody that is in a swing district.”
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Hogg is only looking to change leaders in safe Democratic seats, not places where there could be a risk of a seat flipping to Republicans if an incumbent was no longer running.
When pressed on the question of whether the trade-off that comes with losing seniority and experience in exchange for a new member of Congress is worth it, Hogg said that experience is extremely important, but that it has to actually be useful.
He credits Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., as one such leader, adding that he “wouldn’t necessarily put him [Raskin] in the super youthful camp, but he’s a great example of somebody that we need there to be able to mentor that next generation.”
Hogg’s decision to potentially force incumbent Democrats to defend their seats from other Democrats has not gone over well with some leaders of his party, particularly the Democratic National Committee, of which Hogg is an elected member.
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Ken Martin, chair of the DNC, did not mince words when it comes to the role of the organization’s officers.
“No DNC officer should ever attempt to influence the outcome of a primary election, whether on behalf of an incumbent or challengers … voters should decide who our primary nominees are, not DNC leadership.”
To that end, Martin has proposed that neutrality for DNC officers be codified in the party’s rules.
Martin said that while he respects Hogg, “I’ve said to him, ‘i’If you want to challenge incumbents, you’re more than free to do that, but just not as an officer of the DNC…’ We can’t be both the referee and also the player at the same time. You have to make a decision.”
Asked what that decision will be, Hogg would only say that he has enormous respect for Martin, believes the disagreement is a strategic one, and that they’re having discussions about how to move forward. Hogg said his decision on next steps will depend on how those discussions go.
NewsNation’s Joe Khalil contributed to this report.
