Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York Democrat, publicly announced her support for Sen. Bernard Sanders on Saturday to run as the party’s candidate against President Trump in 2020.

The first-term progressive congresswoman stumped for the fellow self-described democratic socialist as expected during a crowded rally held in her hometown of Queens.

Praising the candidate before introducing him to supporters, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez said he would “bring a working-class revolution to the ballot box in America” by securing the Democratic presidential nomination next year.

“That’s the only way that we are going to win this thing,” said Ms. Ocasio-Cortez. “Because one of our top priorities is not just defeating Donald Trump, but defeating the systems of which he is a symptom.”

Mr. Sanders, Vermont independent, is among more than a dozen candidates seeking the Democratic nomination in 2020. His campaign rally Saturday was his first since a heart attack briefly sidelined his White House bid this month, and the first since participating in the fourth Democratic primary debate this week.

Speaking about Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, 29, he said during that rally that “it is hard to believe the degree to which she has transformed politics in America.”

News about Ms. Ocasio-Cortez supporting Mr. Sanders for president first surfaced during Thursday’s debate.

Michael Moore, a filmmaker and documentarian, announced his support for Mr. Sanders on Friday and subsequently stumped for the candidate at the same campaign rally Saturday.

Mr. Sanders, 78, has served in the U.S. Senate since 2007. He unsuccessfully sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016 before losing to Hillary Clinton.

Recent nationwide polling has placed Mr. Sanders alongside former Vice President Joseph R. Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat, as front-runner among candidates seeking the nomination.

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