Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Democratic congressional candidate Mondaire Jones in the 17th congressional district primary. 

Jones is running for the seat in a crowded field of Democrats vying to replace Rep. Nita Lowey in the House of Representatives in the northern New York City suburbs. 

“Mondaire has run a progressive, grassroots campaign from the start and we need more leaders like him in Congress,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “He knows that this country hasn’t worked for working people because he has lived it. People like us aren’t supposed to run for office, but when we do, we defy the odds and break down barriers. Mondaire had spoken up for racial justice long before the present national outcry and personally understands this country’s existential problems, which is why I’m proud to endorse him today.”

A prominent progressive, Ocasio-Cortez is once again endorsing in a number of Democratic primaries across the country and in New York. The congressional primay is June 23 in New York, and the race for the Lowey seat is one of the more closely watched races. 

“During her run for Congress, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez-Cortez famously said that people like her ‘aren’t supposed to run for office.’ I felt that,” Jones said in a statement. “Growing up poor, black, and gay, I never imagined that someone like me could run for Congress, much less win.  But Rep. Ocasio-Cortez has changed that impression for so many kids who wonder if there is a place for them in a world filled with so much injustice. We need more people in Congress like her, who understand through their lived experiences the urgency of racial justice and economic fairness. I am excited to join her in that fight, and humbled by her support.”