A FACE OF THE FUTURE
28-YEAR-OLD DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ
OUSTS ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL DEMOCRATIC LEADERS
June 27th, 2018: In one of the most stunning political victories of 2018 so far, 28-year-old Democratic Socialist, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, ousts Joe Crowley, the Chair of the House Democratic Caucus and 10-term Congressman in New York's 14th district who outraised her by a factor of 10-to-1. Despite being so severely outraised, she still clinched 57.5% of the vote.
As she said in her campaign ad, "This race is about people versus money. We've got people. They've got money."
Before her victory in the Tuesday primary, she was so politically unknown that the news didn't even refer to her by name. She was simply called "Rep. Joe Crowley's primary opponent."
But in a little more than 24 hours, that has all changed. Her win on Tuesday begins a remarkable ascent which could make her the youngest person in Congress come 2019. Should she defeat her Republican opponent, she will arrive in Washington with a clear progressive agenda — Medicare for all, the abolition of ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement), and legislation to drag big money out of politics.
Her own story begins in the Bronx where she was born and raised by working class Puerto Rican parents. When she was finished with college, she worked as a community organizer and long-hour low wage shifts at restaurants to help support her family.
During the 2016 presidential season, she worked as an organizer for Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Speaking to CNN's Poppy Harlow Wednesday morning, Ocasio-Cortez emphasized that her campaign reached doors not usually "knocked on" by the Democratic establishment: "young people ... communities of color, people who speak English as a second language, working class people, people with two jobs that are usually too 'busy' to vote."
"When people feel like they are being spoken directly to," she said on CNN Newsroom, "I do feel like ... they'll do things like turn out in an off-year, mid-year primary." (CNN Politics)
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ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ LINKS
NEWS
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s climate plan is the only one that matches scientific consensus on the environment (Quartz, 6-27-18)
Meet Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the 28-year-old who took out Joe Crowley (Politico, 6-27-18)
Who is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez? (CNN Politics, 6-27-18)
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez describes "astonishing" primary upset against Rep. Joe Crowley (CBS News, 6-27-18)
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: Millennial beats veteran Democrat (BBC, 6-27-18)
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez On Her Primary Victory (NPR, 6-27-18)
Meet Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the millennial, socialist political novice who beat her establishment Democratic rival in a huge electoral upset (Business Insider, 6-26-18)