U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has become the subject of online mockery after she debuted a new, southern-style accent while speaking at a rally in Memphis, Tennessee.
“We cannot afford to leave Tennessee behind,” the far-left congresswoman said while speaking at a rally in support of State Rep. Justin Pearson, who is currently challenging incumbent U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen in the state’s newly-drawn 9th Congressional District.
Social media users noted that AOC slipped in a bit of a southern twang on the word “behind,” which continued throughout the speech. “We cannot afford to leave Kentucky behind, Alabama behind, Mississippi behind, Georgia behind,” she continued, with the accent getting progressively more pronounced as she went on.
By the time the congresswoman got to “South Carolina behind,” she had fully transformed.
AOC has a new accent in Memphis. pic.twitter.com/WJsjj2plvr
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) July 18, 2026
The event drew comparisons to former Vice President Kamala Harris, who would frequently debut different accents depending on where she was speaking at any given time. This includes speaking in a southern accent, much like AOC, while campaigning in Georgia.
In one instance, Harris appeared to be channeling a soul preacher while speaking about organized labor. “You betta thank a union member for sick leave. You betta thank a union member for paid leave. You betta thank a union member for vacation time,” Harris, the child of wealthy parents of Jamaican and Indian heritage, who grew up in Canada, told the crowd.
AOC herself is no stranger to testing out different accents herself. “Donald Trump is a criminal who was found guilty of 34 felony counts of fraud, liable for sexual abuse – of course he’s lying and abusing and manipulating the stock market too. When he talks about rapists and criminals, he should look in the mirror!” the congresswoman yelled at a rally last year during her “Fight Oligarchy” tour.
The congresswoman has also morphed into a preacher when speaking at church events on more than one occasion.
