Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race
Progressive lawmaker urges voters to focus on candidates' current positions as Hong faces scrutiny over past remarks
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race
Photograph: The American Bazaar (embedded from source)
What this story says
- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez declined to endorse Francesca Hong in Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, citing a preference for evaluating candidates on current positions.
- Hong, a democratic socialist and state representative, faces scrutiny over past remarks on policing and Thanksgiving, which she later walked back.
- Right-rated digests emphasised the absence of endorsements from Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, while the left-rated report focused on Hong’s progressive platform.
- The primary, held on 11 August 2026, is seen as a test of whether a Bernie Sanders-style message can succeed in a competitive Midwestern state.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 13 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 1 of the 14 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
74/100
Craft
95/100
Hype
30/100
14 sources · methodology
Thin on the left so far
Only 1 of the 13 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated left.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez declined to endorse Francesca Hong, a Wisconsin state representative and democratic socialist, in the state’s Democratic gubernatorial primary. Hong is running in the 11 August 2026 primary against five other candidates, including Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and former Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes. Ocasio-Cortez, speaking to ABC’s Jonathan Karl, said voters should focus on candidates’ current positions rather than past statements, which she referred to as part of a distinct political moment she called “Woke 1”.
Hong has faced criticism for past remarks, including support for abolishing the police and comments about Thanksgiving. She later walked back her position on Thanksgiving. The race is viewed as a test of whether a progressive, democratic socialist platform can win in a politically divided Midwestern state. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, is not seeking re-election, leaving the governor’s mansion open for both parties.
Disagreement over Hong’s response to lack of endorsements
Right-rated digests reported that Hong sidestepped a question about why she lacks endorsements from Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders. Breitbart, Fox News and The Daily Wire each carried versions of this claim. The left-rated report in The American Bazaar did not mention Hong being asked about the endorsements or her response. It is unclear whether Hong addressed the question directly in other settings.
What the coverage left out
None of the right-rated digests mentioned Hong’s current policy positions or her status as a leading candidate in the primary. The left-rated report did not address whether Hong was asked about the lack of endorsements from Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders or how she responded. The centre-rated digest did not mention Hong’s past remarks on policing or Thanksgiving.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 2 times, most recently on 12 Aug 2026, 10:00, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
1 rated outlet
- The American Bazaar led on Ocasio-Cortez’s decision not to endorse Hong and her call for voters to judge candidates on current positions. The report described Hong as a “leading candidate” in the primary and framed the race as a test of how far Wisconsin’s Democratic Party can move toward the progressive left. It quoted Ocasio-Cortez’s reference to “Woke 1” as a distinct political moment and noted her refusal to rule out a future presidential or Senate bid. The report also listed Hong’s competitors and mentioned her past remarks on policing and Thanksgiving, though it did not quote her directly on those issues.
Centre
2 rated outlets
- The Internewscast digest reported that Ocasio-Cortez urged voters to weigh Hong’s current message over her past remarks from the “Woke 1” era. The digest did not mention Hong’s past positions on policing or Thanksgiving, nor did it refer to the lack of endorsements from Ocasio-Cortez or Sanders.
Right
10 rated outlets
- Eight right-rated digests led on the absence of endorsements from Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders. Breitbart, Fox News and The Daily Wire each reported that Hong sidestepped a question about the lack of endorsements. The Daily Wire’s digest described Hong as “Thanksgiving-hating” and quoted Sanders saying, “I don’t think so,” when asked if he would endorse her. The New York Post and Washington Examiner digests focused on Ocasio-Cortez’s description of “Woke 1” as “crazy” and her defence of Hong’s shift away from past positions. None of the right-rated digests mentioned Hong’s competitors in the primary or the broader context of the race as a test of progressive politics in Wisconsin.
Read it at the source
28 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
2Centre
5- AOC Urges Voters to Weigh Francesca Hong’s Current Message Over Past Woke 1 Remarks (opens Internewscast in a new tab)
Internewscast — is Internewscast biased? Our profile of this outlet
- AOC declines to endorse Hong, says she’s focused on ‘winning back’ Congress (opens The Hill in a new tab)
- Bernie Sanders doesn't plan to endorse Francesca Hong in Wisconsin governor race (opens Wisconsin State Journal in a new tab)
Wisconsin State Journal — is Wisconsin State Journal biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Bernie Sanders doesn't plan to endorse Francesca Hong in governor race (opens Chippewa Herald in a new tab)
Chippewa Herald — is Chippewa Herald biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Sanders doesn’t believe he will endorse Hong: ‘I don’t think so’ (opens The Hill in a new tab)
The Hill
Right
19- Socialist Candidate Francesca Hong Sidesteps Answering Why AOC and Bernie Sanders Have Not Endorsed Her (opens Breitbart in a new tab)
- Francesca Hong asked about lack of AOC endorsement and the House Dem's remark about the 'Woke 1' era (opens Fox News in a new tab)
- From Piker To Bernie, Nobody Wants To Be Seen With Francesca Hong (opens The Daily Wire in a new tab)
The Daily Wire — is The Daily Wire biased? Our profile of this outlet
- ☕ Daily Brief: Why AOC Condemned “Woke” (opens Upward News in a new tab)
Upward News
- Difficult for Democrats To Escape 'Crazy' Woke Ideas (opens Real Clear Politics in a new tab)
Real Clear Politics — is Real Clear Politics biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- “Woke 2” Wants a Mulligan for “Woke 1” (opens ussanews.com in a new tab)
ussanews.com — is ussanews.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Socialists want a do-over for the insane 2020 positions they supported (opens Washington Examiner in a new tab)
Washington Examiner — is Washington Examiner biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- AOC pushes voters to assess what Francesca Hong is saying now, gloss over her past: ‘Woke 1 was crazy’ (opens New York Post in a new tab)
New York Post — is New York Post biased? Our profile of this outlet
Show 11 more
- AOC Defends Shift In Progressive Rhetoric, Declines Endorsement In Wisconsin Race - Tampa Free Press (opens The Free Press (Tampa) in a new tab)
The Free Press (Tampa) — is The Free Press (Tampa) biased? Our profile of this outlet
- AOC Declines to Endorse Hong in Wisconsin Governor's Race (opens Newsmax in a new tab)
- We finally meet a socialist candidate Bernie Sanders won’t endorse (opens Bizpac Review in a new tab)
Bizpac Review — is Bizpac Review biased? Our profile of this outlet
- U.S. Progressive Leader Sanders Says Korean-American Governor Candidate "Will Not Be Revealed" (opens 연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency in a new tab)
연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency — is 연합뉴스-Yonhap News Agency biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Bernie Sanders won’t endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race (opens Washington Times in a new tab)
Washington Times — is Washington Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Too Bonkers for Bernie: Even Sanders Won't Touch This Socialist Train Wreck (opens RedState in a new tab)
RedState — is RedState biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Sanders' answer when asked if he will endorse socialist Hong in Wisconsin sparks instant mockery: 'Says a lot' (opens Fox News in a new tab)
Fox News
- After endorsing Platner, Comrade Bernie Sanders refuses to endorse Francesca Hong (opens ussanews.com in a new tab)
ussanews.com
- Francesca Hong: the final boss of woke? (opens Spiked in a new tab)
Spiked — is Spiked biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- YIKES! It Appears That Francesca Hong Is Even 'Too Crazy for Bernie' (opens Twitchy in a new tab)
Twitchy — is Twitchy biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Bernie Sanders Declines to Endorse Francesca Hong in Wisconsin Governor's Race (opens Breitbart in a new tab)
Breitbart
Not rated
2- Op-Ed: Francesca Hong and the Democrats’ Fear of Their Own Future (opens AsAm News in a new tab)
AsAm News — is AsAm News biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- Bernie Sanders Spins a Whopper as Socialist Agenda Gets Too Toxic to Defend (opens wokespy.com in a new tab)
wokespy.com — is wokespy.com biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race?
- Of the 13 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 8% are rated left, 15% are rated centre, 77% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 14. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race left or right?
- The story itself is neither. What can be counted is who has covered it, and 77% of the 13 rated outlets on it are rated right — so far this is a story carried mostly by the right. Coverage is still arriving and that can change, which is why the figure is dated rather than fixed.
- Is the coverage of Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race biased?
- Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race is one event reported by 14 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated left had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Ocasio-Cortez declines to endorse Hong in Wisconsin governor race?
- 14 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- Why did Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez decline to endorse Francesca Hong?
- Ocasio-Cortez said voters should focus on candidates’ current positions rather than past statements. She did not endorse Hong in Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, though she acknowledged some past rhetoric during the pandemic went too far. This was reported by The American Bazaar.
- What past remarks has Francesca Hong made that drew criticism?
- Hong previously supported calls to abolish the police and made remarks about Thanksgiving that drew backlash. She later walked back her position on Thanksgiving. These details were included in The American Bazaar’s report.
- Did Bernie Sanders endorse Francesca Hong?
- No. Sen. Bernie Sanders said, “I don’t think so,” when asked if he would endorse Hong, as reported by The Daily Wire. Right-rated digests highlighted the lack of endorsements from both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez.
- What is the significance of Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary?
- The primary is seen as a test of whether a Bernie Sanders-style progressive platform can succeed in a competitive Midwestern state. Wisconsin is politically divided, and the race has attracted national attention due to Hong’s democratic socialist politics. This was noted in The American Bazaar’s report.
How did this read?
About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.
