Meet Mckayla Wilkes, A Progressive Challenger Trying To Take Down The Second Most Powerful Democrat In The House
WALDORF, Maryland — About six months after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez beat a powerful House Democrat, Mckayla Wilkes, a 28-year-old student living in Maryland, googled “What do you need to run for Congress?”A call to the State Board of Elections and $150 later, Wilkes was running for Congress, hoping to replicate Ocasio-Cortez’s success and unseat one of the most powerful Democrats in the country.
“The thing is, I’ve always wanted to pass legislation and help those like myself who are going through these things, but what really emboldened me was AOC running, and seeing that if someone like her can get into Congress, then someone like me can get into Congress,” Wilkes said.But Wilkes faces some unique challenges. The effort to recreate Ocasio-Cortez’s success will likely be more difficult in Maryland’s 5th District, in part because the population is 60% white.
“They never found her body, they just declared her dead,” Wilkes said. “So if you can just imagine for, like, years, thinking that maybe your aunt is still out there somewhere … I started to act out maybe when I was about 13 or 14, which is when I started to realize that she wasn’t here anymore, because I was starting to hit milestones in my life. You know, your first period, your first boyfriend.
“It’s not like it’s something easy to do,” she told BuzzFeed News on Sunday. “It’s not an easy decision to make. But I feel like women should have that right. … My body is not a political playground. There’s no room for [politicians] in the room with me and my doctor.” Wilkes said that, if elected, she wouldn’t support House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, pointing to the speaker’s refusal to support impeachment and her recent comment that a “Wilkes, notably, isn’t the only challenger in the race. Civil rights lawyer and former teacher Briana Urbina has declared her own bid and is running on a platform nearly identical to Wilkes’s — prioritizing Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, criminal justice, and affordable housing.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez calls out 2020 Democrats' climate plans but labels Elizabeth Warren's 'really promising'Despite the criticism, the freshman lawmaker spearheading the Green New Deal did say some of the presidential candidates had promising proposals that caught her eye.
Read more »
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez demands Paul Manafort not be put in solitary on Rikers Island'A prison sentence is not a license for gov torture and human rights violations,' Ocasio-Cortez said on Wednesday.
Read more »
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says Congressmembers were brought to tears as the Dream and Promise act passed'The moment when it passed was like a rock concert,' New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said of the bill seeking to provide permanent protections and create a pathway to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of immigrants.
Read more »
AOC calls solitary confinement 'torture' after learning Manafort will be sent to jail in her districtThe Democratic congresswoman, who represents the Bronx and Queens, said Manafort “should be released” from solitary confinement on Rikers Island, “along with all people being held in solitary.”
Read more »
AOC gets it wrong in tweet about Manafort 'solitary confinement'The president's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, is expected to be transferred temporarily for an upcoming court appearance in New York, but not to solitary confinement, as Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, for example, has stated.
Read more »