Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: Millennial beats veteran Democrat
A millennial candidate has shaken up the US Democratic Party having beaten the incumbent congressman for his seat.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 28, defeated political veteran Joe Crowley, 56, on Tuesday night in their party's congressional primary in New York City.
Mr Crowley, a 10-term Democrat, had been tipped as a future party leader or even Speaker of the House.
Ms Ocasio-Cortez, a former Bernie Sanders volunteer from a Puerto Rican family, won with a 57.5% majority.
Mr Crowley, who had not faced a challenger from his own party in 14 years, had 42.5% in the majority ethnic minority district, which covers parts of the Bronx and Queens.
Ms Ocasio-Cortez will now face Republican candidate Anthony Pappas in the November mid-terms.
If she wins, she will become the youngest ever woman elected to Congress.
- Why US mid-term elections matter
- First black female nominee for US governor
- Can Democrats torpedo Trump in 2018?
The political novice, who describes herself as a socialist Democrat, had huge grassroots support and raised more small-dollar donations than any other New York City congressional candidate.
Media playback is unsupported on your deviceShe led a boldly progressive campaign, supporting universal healthcare, tuition-free college and criminal justice reform.
Skip Twitter post by @JStein_WaPo
This was @Ocasio2018's platform, taken from her office in Elmhurst, Queens ---> pic.twitter.com/w9KqwRl00x
— Jeff Stein (@JStein_WaPo) June 27, 2018
Report
End of Twitter post by @JStein_WaPo
During her campaign, she criticised Mr Crowley on his ties to Wall Street and accused him of being out of touch with his increasingly diverse constituents.
They thanked each other after the result, with Mr Crowley saying he would support Ms Ocasio-Cortez in the mid-terms.
Skip Twitter post by @Ocasio2018
Today I saw people voting that are almost never seen in an off-year midterm primary.
Just now, as I’m typing this with 8 minutes left, two young men of color, 20 years old, just walked up to me and said they just voted.
2 yrs ago, the “experts” told me not to bother with them.— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Ocasio2018) June 27, 2018
Report
End of Twitter post by @Ocasio2018
Political analysts see her 15 percentage point victory as the biggest political upset within a party since Republican House Majority Leader Eric Cantor lost in 2014 to a little-known right-wing professor, Dave Brat.
Who is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez?
One of the many new female faces joining US politics this year, Ms Ocasio-Cortez is a Bronx-born Latina, a community organiser and educator from a working-class background.
"I was born in a place where your zip code determined your destiny," the political newcomer said in her viral campaign video. "Women like me aren't supposed to run for office."
She has a degree in economics and international relations from Boston University, but after graduation worked as a waitress and bartender to supplement her mother's income as a house cleaner and bus driver, according to a profile in The Intercept.
It was after watching Republican President Donald Trump's election, she decided it was time her New York City district was represented by a young progressive woman of colour.
"We're a district that covers the Bronx and Queens and Rikers Island," she told US news outlet Mic during her campaign. "Our median income is around $47,000 a year, we're about 70% people of colour. We've had the same representation for a generation."
