Democrat · New York's 13th District · 2026
Darializa Avila Chevalier
Chevalier grew up in Miami, the daughter of Dominican immigrants.
Biography
Darializa Avila Chevalier remembers searching her mother's car for gas money when a stranger put $5 toward their fuel.1 Born in Miami to Dominican parents, she moved frequently as her mother struggled with rising rents after her parents separated.1 Her father is a truck driver and her mother a caseworker.2
She moved to New York at 18 to attend Columbia University.1 Her academic work now includes doctoral study at CUNY on the treatment of Black immigrants from Latin America within the immigration system.2 She has also taught college courses at Lehman, Columbia and NYU, including sociology at Lehman.2
As an investigator at a public defender's office in Harlem, Avila Chevalier gathers evidence for legal defense work.2 Her organizing includes work with Families for Freedom on immigrant detention and family separation, and arranging court support after Mahmoud Khalil's 2025 detention.2 She belongs to UAW Local 2325 and the New York City Democratic Socialists of America.2
Her platform calls for Medicare for All, full funding for Section 8 and NYCHA, affordable housing construction and stronger tenant protections.3 She also supports abolishing ICE, expanding citizenship pathways and providing free legal representation for immigrants.3 She faces Republican Jomo Williams in the 13th District after winning the Democratic nomination.4
Record and controversies
Earlier public comments
CNN's June 29, 2026 review of her deleted Twitter account, including posts from 2020 to 2022, reported calls to abolish police, prisons and borders, and a post using the phrase “ugly colonizer women” in remarks about Black and Arab men.5 Avila Chevalier said she had grown considerably since the posts and was focused on her community's future.5 In a subsequent MSNOW interview, she described herself as a democratic socialist and denied being a communist.5
September protest arrest
City & State reported that Avila Chevalier was arrested on September 24, 2026 after blocking a road and refusing to move during a protest against Benjamin Netanyahu's United Nations visit and American military aid to Israel.6 She said she was challenging Netanyahu's presence in New York and the use of American taxpayer money for the war in Gaza.6 A specific filed charge or later court disposition was not verified for this collection as of October 28, 2026.