Newly minted socialist congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier abruptly walked out of a radio interview Tuesday after being pressed about controversial social media posts that, at times, overshadowed her campaign against New York Democratic Rep. Adriano Espaillat.
Just hours after dramatically ending the live interview with Spanish-language station La Mega, Avila Chevalier won her race to unseat Espaillat in New York’s 13th Congressional District, a heavily blue-leaning seat covering parts of Manhattan and the Bronx. Her victory is a major upset that ousted a five-term incumbent and chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Avila Chevalier, backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), didn’t want to face questioned on primary Election Day about her about past comments and now-deleted social media posts.
AOC COASTS TO PRIMARY WIN AS QUESTIONS SWIRL ABOUT POLITICAL FUTURE
The candidate, who now goes onto the general election in November where she will almost assuredly win a seat in Congress, has faced growing scrutiny in recent weeks over archived posts. She criticized Democratic leaders, called for abolishing police and prisons, opposed deportations and made inflammatory remarks about U.S. institutions and foreign policy.
She also helped lead protests against the Israel-Hamas war at Columbia University and was part of a campus group that later called for “Death to America.”
Another source of backlash has been Avila Chevalier’s past remarks about Dominican nationalism, including posts in which she said she did not display the Dominican flag on her social media profile because she viewed nationalism as “violent.”
The remarks have drawn backlash in the heavily Dominican-American district she wants to represent and where some voters have questioned her views on Dominican identity and culture.
But when multiple radio hosts attempted to let her speak on the issue before polls closed in New York, the candidate shut down the conversation.
One host asked Avila Chevalier to take the opportunity on the show to “address the Dominican community that may feel bad for the things she has said in the past.”
She responded by saying she felt bad about her past tweets in general but that it was time to unite and “fight for the things that are necessary for the community.”
When another host asked her to specifically address the controversy over the Dominican flag, Avila Chevalier said she wanted to discuss the “issues that are impacting the residents of New York 13,” adding that she was focused on fighting for the people who live in the district.
When a third host pressed her again, she interrupted and said, “I am not going to sit here and be yelled at by various people,” adding that she had already addressed the issue.
“Have a beautiful day,” she said before removing her headphones and abruptly leaving the radio studio.
The controversy surrounding her previous posts has emerged as one of the defining issues in the closely watched Democratic primary between Avila Chevalier and Espaillat, who has represented the district since 2017.
2026 MIDTERMS: PRIMARIES, KEY RACES AND ELECTION RESULTS
Avila Chevalier has argued that the focus on old posts distracts from current policy issues and has said she has evolved since many of the comments were written, framing the criticism as part of a broader effort to undermine her campaign.
During recent debates, Avila Chevalier has acknowledged and apologized for some of her past rhetoric, including comments directed at former Vice President Kamala Harris.
However, she has continued to defend some of her previous positions, including her opposition to deportations. In a recent interview, Avila Chevalier said she still believes “all deportations are wrong,” a stance that has drawn criticism from opponents and become a recurring topic on the campaign trail as voters weigh competing visions for immigration policy.
The controversy over Avila Chevalier’s past social media activity has become a recurring flashpoint in the race, testing whether voters in the heavily Democratic district are willing to look past her past rhetoric as she seeks to build support among a diverse electorate.
Mamdani-backed socialist candidate storms out of live interview when confronted with old social media posts 2026 IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2025 2026-06-24 10:42:33 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
