US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stated on August 9, 2026, that she, along with other progressive politicians and Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) candidates, had "moved away" from statements made during the pandemic, particularly concerning police and prison abolition. She explained that "rhetoric in that time is not rhetoric that we would use today."
A few days later, on August 12, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani echoed these sentiments, stating that he does not believe in defunding the police. Mamdani, who previously said his pandemic-era tweets supporting the defund movement were "out of step" with his current views, emphasised the importance of working with the police department to deliver public safety.
New York City councilman Chi Ossé, to whom Ocasio-Cortez referred, has claimed coinage of the term "woke 1." This term has been used by individuals seeking to minimise statements made following the murder of George Floyd in May 2020.