'All deportations are wrong': Mamdani-backed socialist challenges Jeffries-supported Democrat

As New Yorkers head to the polls Tuesday, incumbent Democratic Rep. Adriano Espaillat is fighting to retain his party’s nomination against a Mamdani-backed challenger.

The 71-year-old was first elected to Congress in the 2016 election, representing a district that encompasses northern Manhattan and a section of the west Bronx.

'I forget to get napkins. So I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me.'

“I'm the first undocumented, formerly undocumented member of Congress. I'm the first Dominican American member of Congress in a city that has a million Dominican Americans,” Espaillat said.

Despite his membership in the Congressional Progressive Caucus and classification as one of the most liberal House members, he doesn't seem to have been adequately radical enough for Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his fellow democratic socialists.

Darializa Avila Chevalier, a community organizer and the daughter of Dominican immigrants, is challenging Espaillat for the seat.

Avila Chevalier is positioning herself as a further-left alternative to Espaillat, claiming on her website that she has received endorsements from Mamdani, the New York City Democratic Socialists of America, and former House “Squad” member Jamaal Bowman.

Espaillat, by contrast, has the support of establishment New York Democrats such as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Gov. Kathy Hochul.

“I am someone who has been organizing for over 14 years in our community, and I have to ask: Have things gotten better in our community under our current leadership?” Avila Chevalier said last week in a primary debate.

In a recent interview, the 32-year-old stood by her belief that “all deportations are wrong,” even for those convicted of violating American criminal law, calling it “double jeopardy.”

Avila Chevalier is also behind a plethora of tweets from a since-deleted X account that featured statements such as: "It means ending policing full stop. Period. No more police at all ever,” “I forget to get napkins. So I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me,” and one calling the Democratic National Committee a "big fraudulent white nasty status quo bitch."

"I have grown considerably since in the years since these tweets, and I am focused on our community and our community’s future," she said about the deleted social media account.

Avila Chevalier has narrowed the polls leading up to the election. According to the New York Times, recent polling shows Avila Chevalier with a lead as high as four points and Espaillat with a lead as high as eight points.

Bettors on Polymarket seem to have confidence in Espaillat, placing him at a 66% chance of winning, compared to Avila Chevalier’s 37%.

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This primary standoff represents just the latest battle between the Democratic “mainstream” and the rising socialist sect of the party. As of 2025, there were 250 democratic socialists in elected office, compared to just 35 in 2017.

These offices are not exclusively low-level either. Janeese Lewis George, who just secured the Democratic nomination for D.C. mayor, is a democratic socialist, both New York City Mayor Mamdani and Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson are democratic socialists, and Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who just advanced to the general election for her city’s mayoral race, is a DSA member as well.

Espaillat, as a seasoned politician, has gone after Avila Chevalier for her lack of governmental experience: “This is not a PhD program. This is government. And you need experience.”

Avila Chevalier has focused much of the debate on Israel and American aid to the country. During a debate, she attacked Espaillat for receiving money from AIPAC and “voting to send our tax dollars to a country that is enacting a genocide.”

However, Espaillat has swung back, highlighting Avila Chevalier’s attendance at a controversial pro-Palestinian rally in Times Square on Oct. 8, 2023, one day after the Hamas-led attack on Israel.

"In Congress, she'll take on corporate greed, bad landlords, and D.C.'s broken political system," Mamdani said in support of Avila Chevalier's candidacy.

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