Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., has lost his primary to a challenger backed by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, NBC News projects, in a major victory for the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Subscribe to read this story ad-free <\/p>\n
Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.<\/p>\n
![\"arrow\"](\"https:\/\/media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com\/image\/upload\/rockcms\/2026-01\/arrow-f55fa5.svg\"){kind=icon}
<\/p>\n
Community organizer and activist Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old member of the Democratic Socialists of America, defeated Espaillat, 71, after having cast him as an insufficient fighter for the working-class residents of the upper Manhattan district who was out of step with Democratic primary voters on Israel policy. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhere is our congressman when ICE is kidnapping his constituents? Why should we let Adriano Espaillat vote to spend billions on bombs overseas when we\u2019re struggling to afford rent and groceries right here in New York City?\u201d Avila Chevalier, who works at a public defender\u2019s office, said in a video <\/a>launching her campaign. <\/p>\n \u201cWe live in the richest country in the history of the world. It\u2019s never been that our government lacks the resources to help us. It\u2019s just that the establishment lacks the courage,\u201d she continued. <\/p>\n She had support on the airwaves from Justice Democrats, which backs progressives taking on Democratic incumbents. But she also faced an onslaught of attacks from groups backing Espaillat, including allies of the Hispanic Caucus, which Espaillat chairs. The attacks highlighted her past social media posts<\/a>, in which she profanely criticized Democratic leaders, including calling former President Joe Biden a \u201crapist\u201d and writing \u201cF— Kamala Harris.\u201d<\/p>\n The posts, according to reports from the New York Post<\/a> and CNN<\/a>, also included comments that \u201cIsrael doesn\u2019t exist,\u201d that \u201ca world without prisons or police\u201d is needed and that \u201call deportation is wrong.\u201d <\/p>\n Avila Chevalier told NBC News this month that now that she is older she is \u201cunderstanding a little more how a lot of these systems function.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMy values have always been my values,\u201d she said. \u201cBut my understanding of how to approach the systems has grown.\u201d<\/p>\n She also responded with a TV ad<\/a> saying: \u201cThe same billionaires that attacked Zohran Mamdani are now spending millions against me. They know that unlike Adriano Espaillat, I can\u2019t be bought and I won\u2019t back down to Trump.\u201d <\/p>\n Avila Chevalier\u2019s campaign in the 13th District had mostly flown under the radar both nationally and in New York City until Mamdani endorsed her last month<\/a>, despite having initially promised to back Espaillat. He stood by her after those posts emerged.<\/p>\n Espaillat endorsed former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in last year\u2019s mayoral primary but backed Mamdani after he won the nomination. Mamdani then privately promised to support him, a pledge first reported by The New York Times<\/a> and Politico<\/a> and confirmed by a person familiar with the conversation, before he eventually reneged and backed Espaillat\u2019s challenger. Mamdani\u2019s campaign did not comment on any agreement. <\/p>\n Mamdani cast Avila Chevalier as the future of the Democratic Party, saying as he announced his endorsement on MS NOW<\/a> that she will be \u201con the front lines\u201d of showing that Democrats \u201chave to be fighting for a vision that reckons with the fact that working people were not left behind just four years ago or 16 years ago. They were left behind a long time before that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd it will take a new generation of leadership to ensure that the heartbeat of this party is once again the struggles of the working class,\u201d Mamdani said. <\/p>\n Avila Chevalier is also a vocal critic of Israel, calling its war against Hamas in Gaza a genocide. A Columbia University alumna, she participated in the pro-Palestinian protests<\/a> at the university and was present during last year\u2019s standoff with police at Hamilton Hall, which she described as \u201cquite horrific.\u201d She also attended a controversial pro-Palestinian rally the day after Hamas\u2019 2023 attacks in Israel \u2014 an event that Brad Lander, the former city comptroller also sporting Mamdani\u2019s endorsement in his congressional bid, condemned. <\/p>\n Avila Chevalier has voiced support for legislation to block certain arms sales to Israel, also known as the \u201cBlock the Bombs\u201d bill. She has also called for abolishing ICE, \u201cMedicare for All\u201d and national tenant protections.<\/p>\n Espaillat leaned into his experience pushing for affordable housing and immigrant rights. He was the first former undocumented immigrant, and the first Dominican American, elected to the House. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m running on my record, a record of accomplishment, a record that has listened to people and that has brought back results to the community I represent,\u201d he said at a Spectrum News NY1 debate<\/a>.<\/p>\n Espaillat had support from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Gov. Kathy Hochul, state Attorney General Letitia James, City Council Speaker Julie Menin, the Congressional Black Caucus and the state AFL-CIO. <\/p>\n The race had turned negative in its final days, with Avila Chevalier, an Afro-Latina who is Muslim, accusing Espaillat and his supporters of racist attacks and \u201clies about my identity, my faith and my family.\u201d <\/p>\n![\"Darializa](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/250623-darializa-avila-Chevalier-new-york-mn-0900-c6503b.jpg\")
Darializa Avila Chevalier, Democratic House candidate for New York, during a “Get Out The Vote” rally in Brooklyn on June 18, 2026. Adam Gray \/ Bloomberg via Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Nebula_](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/260623-adriano-espaillat-new-york-mn-0910-0c3fdf.jpg\")
Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., walks through the Capitol in February.Heather Diehl \/ Getty Images file<\/p>\n