Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old community organizer and doctoral student who is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, won the Democratic Party primary for New York’s 13th Congressional District on Tuesday night. She defeated five-term incumbent Representative Adriano Espaillat, who received approximately 45.9 percent of the vote, while Chevalier secured about 49.4 percent.
Chevalier, who has worked as a community organizer and participated in pro-Palestinian activism, including events at Columbia University, is backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who is also a self-described socialist. Mamdani’s backing included public appearances and mobilization of supporters through a ground campaign focused on turnout in the district, which covers parts of Upper Manhattan and the Bronx.
Chevalier — who was one of three Mamdani-backed candidates to oust incumbent Democrat members of congress on Tuesday night — openly backs a number of far-left policies and has expressed disdain for the United States.
In a 2019 social media post that has since been deleted, Chevalier bragged about desecrating the American flag. “I forgot to get napkins so I just wiped my hand on the American flag behind me,” she wrote in the post, which was accompanied by a smiling emoji.
Mamdani-backed Darializa Avila Chevalier just won the Democratic Primary for NY-13
This is what she had to say about the American flag
We are in serious trouble. pic.twitter.com/GxYWHE5fZk
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) June 24, 2026
Past social media activity attributed to Chevalier included strong positions on policing and immigration. In 2020 posts during nationwide riots following the death of George Floyd, she responded to questions about the “defund the police” slogan by stating intentions to “defund and abolish” and clarified that this meant “ending policing full stop. Period. No more police at all ever.”
On deportations, she has maintained that “all deportations are wrong,” regardless of immigration status or criminal history. Additional earlier posts expressed support for abolishing borders and prisons, nationalizing major industries, and seizing the means of production.
She has since claimed that some of these statements as no longer representative of her current public focus while affirming ongoing commitments to related principles.
Chevalier’s primary victory formed part of a set of successes for candidates endorsed by Mayor Mamdani. In addition to her win in the 13th District, Brad Lander defeated incumbent Representative Dan Goldman in the 10th District, and Claire Valdez won the open 7th District seat.
The districts in question have strong Democrat leans and are near certain to remain in party hands come November.
