alexandria ocasio-cortez

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#AbolishICE Dem defeats long-standing incumbent in New York primary

It is one of the biggest wins for the progressive left—maybe ever.

 

David Covucci

Tech

Posted on Jun 26, 2018   Updated on May 21, 2021, 12:34 pm CDT

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a 28-year-old Democratic Socialist you may never have heard of until now.

But tonight, she became one of the biggest names in politics when she took down Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) in a New York House primary unabashedly, challenging him from the left and pulling off a huge upset.

Ocasio-Cortez was declared the winner around 9:00pm ET tonight, and her reaction when she realized she might win instantly captured the internet’s heart.

She also practically live tweeted her shocking upset.

Crowley was one of the highest-ranking Democrats in the House and was considered a possible contender for Speaker of the House if Democrats took the House in 2019.

Instead, he lost to the political neophyte who ran far to the left of him. Ocasio-Cortez, a former Bernie Sanders organizer, took an extremely progressive platform, speaking out about abolishing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency.

It was a platform Ocasia-Cortez adopted long before it became messaging for more centrist Dems. She has been an advocate for a federal jobs guarantee and Medicaid for all, positions that, along with her ICE stance, put her firmly to the left of America’s most popular progressive, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I.-Vt.).

Crowley’s district, the New York 14th in Queens and the Bronx, has a large Hispanic population and saw an increase in ICE raids that Ocasia-Cortez campaigned against.

Crowley conceded the race on Twitter and said he would campaign for her.

After seeing the Crowley defeat, President Donald Trump weighed in on Twitter, although it appears he missed the message.

Somehow it seems unlikely Ocasio-Cortez is planning to run on a promise to be nicer to Donald Trump.

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*First Published: Jun 26, 2018, 10:09 pm CDT