- AOC is backing state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi against fellow Democratic Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney.
- The endorsement pits a leading progressive against the head of House Democrats' campaign arm.
- Maloney told Insider that while he respects AOC, he has to "agree to disagree" with the move.
Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York is backing state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi in a primary challenge against fellow Sean Patrick Maloney, a fellow House Democrat from New York and the chair of the party's House campaign arm.
"Alessandra has been here before — she knows what it takes to go up against powerful opponents and win," the progressive congressman will say in a fundraising email to be distributed later on Tuesday, according to the New York Times.
The remarkable decision to back Maloney, who's currently serving a second term as the chair of the House Democratic Campaign Committee, comes after the congressman angered progressives and other Democrats last month by announcing that he would be run in a district currently held by Democratic Rep. Mondaire Jones of New York.
That was all triggered after a court blocked previously-drawn lines and ordered that new lines be drawn by a court-appointed special master.
Jones had pointed out that Maloney didn't notify him about the decision ahead of time, choosing to simply tweet out his decision. Some Democrats also argued that Maloney should have run for a more competitive district further to the north that included much of his old district.
Maloney has insisted that the district is his to run in, given his residency within the newly-drawn boundaries.
Jones — a first-term progressive congressman and one of just two Black, gay members of Congress — later opted to run instead for a newly-created open seat in New York's 10th congressional district, which covers Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn.
Jones also told NY1's Kevin Frey recently that Maloney later called to apologize for the incident, though he wouldn't say whether he'd accepted the apology.
—Kevin Frey (@KevinFreyTV) May 26, 2022
Biaggi, a progressive state senator since 2019, had previously been running for an open seat that encompassed parts of Long Island and Westchester County before opting to challenge Maloney.
"His job is to maximize the number of seats that we have in the Democratic majority and if he was doing his job, he would have stayed in that district," she told the Times, referring to the more competitive district that Maloney had mostly represented before.
Biaggi told the Times that she was "thrilled" to have Ocasio-Cortez's support.
"Her endorsement is really an indication to everyone that this is an important fight for the party," Biaggi said. "She really is the standard-bearer."
In a statement to Insider, Maloney offered praised for Ocasio-Cortez but said he would have to "agree to disagree" on the congresswoman's decision to back his primary opponent.
"I respect Rep. Ocasio-Cortez and have worked with her on a number of policy matters, including as a co-sponsor of the Green New Deal," he said. "But, on her endorsement, we are going to have to agree to disagree."
"This election comes down to voters in NY-17, and I am honored to have received overwhelming support locally, including endorsements from nearly 40 elected leaders and democratic party committees," he added.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
