Meet Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
The Bronx-born daughter of a Puerto Rican mother and a South Bronx father. Waitress. Bartender. Organizer. Congresswoman.
First elected in 2018, Alexandria defeated a 10-term incumbent with no major endorsements and less than one-tenth his campaign funds. She has never taken a dime from corporate PACs.
Her Story
01 — Roots in The Bronx
Alexandria was born in The Bronx to working-class parents: her father was a small business owner and architect from the South Bronx, and her mother cleaned homes after moving to New York from Arecibo, Puerto Rico.
As school violence and dropout rates rose in the early 1990s, her parents scraped their savings together and purchased a modest home 30 miles north of the city in search of better schools. Much of Alexandria's adolescence was spent in transit between her tight-knit extended family in The Bronx and school in Yorktown Heights.
"It struck me as unfair, even then, how the opportunities available to children were so often determined by their ZIP code."
02 — After College
At Boston University, Alexandria's father passed away suddenly from cancer at just 48 years old. Facing huge medical bills and the risk of foreclosure, she returned to The Bronx — working two jobs and 18-hour restaurant shifts while managing student loans and organizing her community.
After Donald Trump won in 2016, Alexandria traveled to Standing Rock in solidarity with indigenous demonstrators. The sight of families risking everything to protect their water and their land moved something in her.
03 — Running for Congress
She ran for Congress with no major endorsements, outspent nearly 10 to 1 by a 10-term incumbent. On June 26, 2018, she won her primary. At 29, she became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress, and the first woman of color to represent NY-14.
Delivering for NY-14
Alexandria doesn't just talk. Here is a decade of proof.
- 01
Passed the Largest Climate Investment in U.S. History
$369B — 9M clean energy jobs, 40% emissions cut by 2030, $1,000/yr household savings.
- 02
First Major Federal Gun Reform in 30 Years
Expanded background checks for under-21 buyers, closed the boyfriend loophole, funded mental health programs.
- 03
Capped Insulin at $35/Month for Medicare Recipients
Part of a broader Medicare drug negotiation win — the first time in history Medicare can negotiate prices.
- 04
$22 Million for The Bronx & Queens
A new labor and delivery unit at Elmhurst Hospital; 300 SUNY Maritime students trained in green energy jobs.
- 05
Led the Puerto Rico Status Act
Acknowledges the U.S. as a colonizing force for the first time in history, and charts a path to self-determination.
- 06
Taxed the Rich
IRS funding to pursue wealthy tax evaders; 15% minimum corporate tax; 1% tax on stock buybacks.
- 07
Grew the Green New Deal
Expanded GND support in Congress; developed implementation guides; created the American Climate Corps.
- 08
Expanded Free Tutoring Statewide
Homework Helpers: 4,000+ free sessions to NY-14 students and a new chapter at the University at Buffalo.
- 09
Helped Progressives Win Across the Country
Raised $100K for fellow progressive Members and candidates facing unprecedented special-interest spending.
- 10
Recovered $1.9 Million for NY-14 Residents
Alexandria's congressional team opened 1,800+ constituent cases against federal agencies — and won.
Our District
NY-14 spans parts of The Bronx and Queens — one of the most ethnically, linguistically, and culturally diverse districts in the entire country.
Immigrants make up over 45% of our population. More than 200 languages are spoken here, representing families from Colombia, China, Bangladesh, Greece, Yemen, Ecuador, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and dozens more countries.
Our district is home to Astoria Park — New York City's oldest and largest free public pool — and Pelham Bay Park, three times larger than Central Park. It includes the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona and Thomas Pell Wildlife Sanctuary overlooking the Long Island Sound.
The Bronx
- Castle Hill
- Country Club
- City Island
- Clason Point
- Edgewater
- Hunts Point
- Mott Haven
- Parkchester
- Pelham
- Port Morris
- Soundview
- Throggs Neck
- Westchester Square
Queens
- Astoria
- College Point
- Corona
- Ditmars Steinway
- East Elmhurst
- Jackson Heights
Standing with us
Leaders from Congress to the factory floor — united for economic justice in 2026.
- Sen. Bernie Sanders
- Rep. Ilhan Omar
- 1199SEIU
- Rep. Jamaal Bowman (NY-16)
- Rep. Rashida Tlaib (MI-12)
- Rep. Greg Casar (TX-35)
- Rep. Summer Lee (PA-12)
- Rep. Delia Ramirez (IL-03)
- Rep. Maxwell Frost (FL-10)
- Sen. Ed Markey (MA)
- Rep. Nydia Velázquez (NY-07)
- Rep. Adriano Espaillat (NY-13)
- Rep. Yvette Clarke (NY-09)
- Rep. Joaquin Castro (TX-20)
- Rep. Cori Bush (MO-01)
- SEIU 32BJ
- Communications Workers of America
- Amalgamated Transit Union
- NYC Central Labor Council
- RWDSU / UFCW
- American Federation of Teachers
- Transport Workers Union Local 100
- Hotel Trades Council NYC
- Writers Guild of America East
- IBEW Local 3
- Teamsters Joint Council 16
- United Auto Workers Region 9
- Working Families Party
- Sunrise Movement
- Make the Road New York
- NY Communities for Change
- Justice Democrats
- Our Revolution
- VOCAL-NY
- Indivisible Bronx
- Bronx Climate Justice North
- Mijente
- DSA NYC
- Center for Popular Democracy
Frequently Asked
This Fight Needs You.
Alexandria is counting on all of us. There is only one way we will transform this country — and that is together.