A community organizer and activist is entering the race for New York’s 13th Congressional District, setting up a primary challenge against longtime Rep. Adriano Espaillat.
Darializa Avila Chevalier, the child of Dominican immigrants and a self-described democratic socialist, announced her campaign, saying she wants to bring sweeping changes to the district, which includes parts of Manhattan and the Bronx.
“I am running for Congress,” Avila Chevalier said.
Avila Chevalier said one of her top priorities is securing “housing for all,” while also calling for the abolition of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“We are making sure that we are abolishing ICE because our immigrant neighbors and our entire community deserve to breathe,” she said.
She also emphasized redirecting taxpayer money into local communities and schools.
“We deserve to have our taxes come back to our communities, come back to our schools so that we can fund our kids’ educations from cradle to college,” she said.
Avila Chevalier criticized Espaillat’s record, accusing him of supporting federal funding for ICE and taking donations from corporations tied to the immigration enforcement system.
“What we’ve seen is that he’s voted to fund ICE by almost $8 billion … that he has ignored the families of folks who’ve been kidnapped by ICE in his very district,” she said. “I think we need leadership that not only has personal experience and success in getting folks out of ICE detention, but also a vision for how we actually protect our neighbors here.”
Espaillat has represented the district since 2017.
Avila Chevalier said her message to Bronx voters is rooted in community advocacy and direct action.
“Democrats who show up for our neighbors on their darkest days,” she said. “That is the type of leadership that I have been part of as an organizer … and that’s the type of leadership that I would show in Congress as well.”
Avila Chevalier said she believes the district deserves stronger representation and vowed to continue organizing throughout the campaign.
