Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also known as AOC, is an American politician and activist serving since 2019 as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district. She is a member of the Democratic Party.
Ocasio-Cortez was born in the New York City borough of the Bronx. Her family later moved to Yorktown Heights, where she attended Yorktown High School. She then attended Boston University, where she double-majored in international relations and economics, graduating with honors. She then moved back to the Bronx, becoming an activist and working as a waitress and bartender.
On June 26, 2018, Ocasio-Cortez drew national recognition when she won the Democratic Party's primary election for New York's 14th congressional district. She defeated Democratic Caucus Chair Joe Crowley, a 10-term incumbent, in what was widely seen as the biggest upset victory in the 2018 midterm election primaries. She easily won the November general election, defeating Republican Anthony Pappas. She was reelected in the 2020, 2022, and 2024 elections.
Taking office at age 29, Ocasio-Cortez is the youngest woman and the first female member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) to be elected to Congress. She advocates a progressive platform that includes support for worker cooperatives, Medicare for All, tuition-free public college, a federal jobs guarantee, a Green New Deal, and abolishing the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). She is a prominent leader of the left-wing faction of the Democratic Party, and a member of progressive congressional bloc "The Squad".
