Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Biography

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was born on October 13, 1989, in the Bronx, New York, to a Puerto Rican family. Her father, Sergio Ocasio-Roman, was an architect born in the Bronx; her mother, Blanca, was born in Puerto Rico. She grew up in Yorktown Heights in Westchester County, attending Yorktown High School before earning a BA in economics and international relations from Boston University in 2011.

After college, AOC returned to New York to help support her family following her father's death. She worked multiple jobs — as a bartender and waitress, including at Flats Fix and Coffee Shop in Union Square — while staying engaged in activism. She volunteered as an organizer for Bernie Sanders's 2016 presidential campaign and worked as an educational director at the National Hispanic Institute. It was while knocking doors for Sanders that she came to the attention of Justice Democrats, who recruited her to run.

In 2018, at 28 years old, Ocasio-Cortez challenged ten-term incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley — the fourth-ranked House Democrat — and defeated him in the Democratic primary with 57% of the vote. She won the general election overwhelmingly and was sworn in on January 3, 2019, becoming the youngest woman ever elected to the U.S. Congress. She is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party.

In Congress, she has been a defining voice of the American left. She co-authored the Green New Deal resolution with Sen. Ed Markey. She has fought for Medicare for All, rent stabilization, student debt cancellation, and the abolition of ICE. She has secured more than $165 million in federal flood relief for her district. She won reelection in 2022 and 2024 and is running for a fifth term in 2026. She is engaged to Riley Roberts.

In Congress & 2026 Reelection

Ocasio-Cortez is running for her fifth term representing New York's 14th Congressional District, covering the South Bronx and parts of Queens — one of the most diverse, working-class constituencies in the country. She faces no serious primary challenge and is heavily favored in the general election in this safely Democratic seat.

In the 2026 cycle, AOC has been one of the most active progressive endorsers in the country, backing Justin Pearson in Tennessee, Chris Rabb in Pennsylvania, Analilia Mejia in New Jersey, Adam Hamawy in New Jersey, Melat Kiros in Colorado, and the Mamdani congressional slate in New York, among others. She has continued her Fighting Oligarchy tour alongside Bernie Sanders, drawing massive crowds across the country.

Her legislative focus remains on the Green New Deal, Medicare for All, housing as a human right, and holding Wall Street and corporate power accountable. She has been a vocal critic of Israeli military operations in Gaza and has co-sponsored legislation to restrict U.S. arms sales. She is widely considered one of the most influential Democrats in the country and a leading voice for the next generation of the American left.