The Story:
On June 26, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated incumbent Joseph Crowley in a primary election, becoming the Democratic Party’s nominee for the House seat from New York’s 14th district, that is, parts of the Bronx and north-central Queens in New York City. This was a huge upset: Crowley, with the title Democratic Caucus Chairman, is the 4th ranking Democratic member of the House, and had a war chest for this race of $3 million.
One Explanation:
Complacency is one common explanation for Crowley’s loss.
The New York Times editorialized thus on June 19: “This is the second primary debate in which Mr. Crowley was a no-show. A spokeswoman for Mr. Crowley said he had scheduling conflicts that wouldn’t allow him to attend the two debates, inevitably leading voters to wonder — what are we, chopped liver?”
The Thing to Know:
Many observers naturally read the primary result as a grassroots rebellion against the Democratic Party’s leadership, and as part of the continuing turmoil of the Sanders-versus-Clinton primary campaign of two years ago, especially since Ocasio-Cortez ran a campaign well to Crowley’s left.
