Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez made history in the recent midterm election as the youngest
woman to be elected to Congress amongst a surge of female candidates. At only twenty-nine
years old, she gained popularity among lower to middle class, and represents New York’s
Fourteenth Congressional district, including parts of the Bronx and Queens.
Both of Ocasio-Cortez’s parents grew up poor: her mother in Puerto Rico and her father
in the South Bronx. Her parents decided that the public education in their Bronx neighborhood of
Parkchester wasn’t sufficient, so they pulled together enough money to afford a small house in a
prosperous part of Westchester County. Ocasio-Cortez attended high school with the awareness
that she was different from most of the wealthy, white students. After attending Boston
University, she returned to the Bronx where her family was struggling to make ends meet after
the death of her father.
Ocasio-Cortez worked on the Bernie Sanders campaign and after his defeat, she was
recruited to the Brand New Congress, an organization started by Sanders’ staff devoted to getting
more people who shared his values elected to government positions. Branding herself as a
woman of the people, Ocasio-Cortez is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. In an
early campaign video she says, “women like me aren’t supposed to run for office. I wasn’t born
to a wealthy or powerful family. . . . This race is about people versus money. We’ve got people,
they’ve got money.” Her statement rang true with the voters, who elected her to instigate real
change for their district.
Today Ocasio-Cortez represents hope, not only for women, but for millennials and
younger generations who are trying to make a difference. She embodies the ideal of the
American dream: a daughter of a poor immigrant who attained a high position in the United
States government through than hard work and merit.