But if Joe Crowley was typical of the party machine, speaking critically of Donald Trump but toeing the line when it came to rifts between the center and left flanks, Cuellar is somewhat of an outlier. He has an A rating from the NRA, close relationships with oil and gas corporations, and has voted more than once to fund Trump’s border wall, part of which is in his district. He has received money from KochPAC, the political action committee connected to Koch Industries. Cuellar is considered among anti-choice Democrats and has voted in support of a 20-week abortion ban. Last year he voted in line with Trump’s positions 75% of the time.

So will Cisneros face the same opposition from Democratic Party heavyweights that Ocasio-Cortez did in her challenge against an incumbent Democrat? (Remember that Crowley was endorsed by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Governor Andrew Cuomo, and Senator Chuck Schumer before he lost.) When Justice Democrats announced their “Primary Cuellar” campaign in January, executive director Alexandra Rojas pointed to the fact that Cuellar’s district went for Hillary Clinton by a margin of nearly 20 percent in the 2016 presidential election, arguing that his Trump-adjacent politics don’t reflect the concerns of his constituents.

Cisneros similarly argues that issues like poverty, health care, free public education, and climate change are what voters really care about and that Cuellar’s reputation as a successful fund-raiser from big-money donors hasn’t actually helped South Texans. “What is that funding being used for? It’s not being used to address the health care access issues that we see here on the border. It’s not being used to invest in our schools. It’s not being used to invest in our communities. Supporting Medicare for All, the $15 minimum wage, the Green New Deal—those are actually addressing directly the issues that we see here in South Texas.”

Still, the DCCC did not take kindly to the announcement of plans to primary a Democrat, even against one like Cuellar, stating in March that it “will not conduct business with, nor recommend to any of its targeted campaigns, any consultant that works with an opponent of a sitting Member of the House Democratic Caucus.” Party operatives—hoping to build on the momentum from Beto O’Rourke’s close campaign against Ted Cruz for Senate and two flipped districts in 2018—want to try and flip six more in 2020, and think incumbent Blue Dogs should be left alone. There are also those who say that the landscapes of South Texas and the Bronx are far too different for a campaign like Ocasio-Cortez’s to work in a district that also contains moderate and conservative voters in places like San Antonio.

Cisneros doesn’t seem too worried about party pressure. “By being silent and by not supporting a true progressive, they’re doing a disservice to Democrats everywhere,” she said. “Wanting to push back against someone [who is] actually calling [Cuellar] out and speaking the truth about him acting as a Republican and not a Democrat, again, would be a disservice to the entire Democratic Party and the people supporting it.”

This article has been edited to clarify that Henry Cuellar has received donations from KochPAC.