Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is endorsing Ana María Archila for lieutenant governor, a move that could give her candidacy a boost ahead of Tuesday’s primary election.
In a statement, Archila said she was “incredibly honored” to receive Ocasio-Cortez’s support, calling the congresswoman “a bold champion who fights every day to put the needs of working families before the wants of billionaires.” The New York Times reports that Ocasio-Cortez will make an appearance at a campaign rally on Monday in support of Archila. She is now the third member of New York’s congressional delegation to back Archila, after Representatives Jamaal Bowman and Nydia Velázquez.
Archila, a community organizer from Queens, was previously the co–executive director of the progressive organization Center for Popular Democracy Action and is running with the city’s public advocate, Jumaane Williams, who is challenging Governor Kathy Hochul from the left. Archila will face two other Democratic candidates for the role: the current incumbent Antonio Delgado, who was just sworn in in May following the resignation of his predecessor Brian Benjamin, and Diana Reyna, a former City Council member who is running alongside Representative Tom Suozzi.
Archila received national attention in 2018 after she and another woman, Maria Gallagher, confronted then-Senator Jeff Flake in an elevator over his support for Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court. The two women spoke about their experiences as sexual-assault survivors just one day after the nation heard Christine Blasey Ford testify about her allegation against Kavanaugh. Archila later attended the 2019 State of the Union address as a guest of Ocasio-Cortez.
