Avila Chevalier defeats Espaillat in progressive New York House upset

Darializa Avila Chevalier unseated five-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat in New York’s 13th Congressional District Democratic primary, a jolt that sent a 32-year-old democratic socialist and Ph.D. student to the brink of Congress. Espaillat conceded at 10:34 p.m. on June 23, 2026, after a race that had been closely watched across upper Manhattan and part of the Bronx.

Espaillat had represented the district since 2017 and chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, making his defeat one of the sharpest rebukes to the Democratic establishment in New York City. Avila Chevalier’s victory was backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America, and it came as part of a broader progressive sweep that also delivered wins to Brad Lander in the 10th District and Claire Valdez in the 7th District.

The result was especially notable because the race drew scrutiny before Election Day over resurfaced social media posts attributed to a now-deleted @darializabonet account. In those posts, Avila Chevalier criticized the U.S. military and service members, described military service as tied to war crimes, called for defense spending to be cut to 0%, and endorsed a post that referred to service members as child murderers and pro-imperialism. The controversy became a test of whether establishment criticism could outweigh the energy of a Democratic primary coalition built around the Gaza war, anti-establishment politics, and left-wing organizing.

Avila Chevalier, who once helped organize pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, sharpened that argument against Espaillat by attacking his handling of the March 2025 detention of Mahmoud Khalil by ICE and his acceptance of donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Mamdani appeared at her watch party after the race was called and praised her, underscoring how closely the campaign was tied to his effort to reshape New York Democratic politics.

The district’s overwhelming Democratic tilt makes Avila Chevalier the likely favorite in November, when she is expected to win the seat. If she does, she will become the first woman ever to represent NY-13, capping a primary in which a first-time candidate outlasted a veteran incumbent and exposed how far the party’s base is willing to move past controversy when the underlying coalition is strong enough.