Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez faced accusations on social media of adopting a different accent while campaigning in Memphis, Tennessee, with critics drawing comparisons to former Vice President Kamala Harris, who faced similar claims in the past. The New York Democrat was speaking in support of a fellow progressive candidate, prompting online commentators to accuse her of altering her speech pattern to appeal to a Southern, largely Black audience.

Ocasio-Cortez appeared at the rally on Friday to campaign for Justin Pearson, a Tennessee state representative running for the US House as a progressive candidate. Video clips of her remarks, including a line about the party being unable to "afford to leave" certain voters behind, circulated widely and fuelled the accent controversy, with some social media users describing her delivery as "going full Kamala".