New York New Members 2019

Rep.-elect Max Rose (D-N.Y.-11)

DATE OF BIRTH: Nov. 28, 1986
RESIDENCE: Staten Island, N.Y.
OCCUPATION: Health-care executive
EDUCATION: B.A., Wesleyan University; M.S., London School of Economics
FAMILY: Wife, Leigh

Max Rose, a 31-year-old Army captain and former health-care executive, turned one of the most conservative boroughs of New York City blue in his political debut.

Rose unseated Republican Rep. Dan Donovan in a district that encompasses Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn. 

The New York Democrat prevailed by emphasizing his five years of military service, during which he earned a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart in Afghanistan. He currently serves in the National Guard.

After leaving the military he worked for Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth Thompson and later as chief of staff at Brightpoint Health, a nonprofit health-care provider.

Rose, who was endorsed by former President Obama, also ran on a more centrist platform, emphasizing local issues such as infrastructure in a district that voted for President Trump by 10 points in 2016 — the only borough in New York City to vote for him.

Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.-14)

DATE OF BIRTH: Oct. 13, 1989
RESIDENCE:  New York City
OCCUPATION: Educator, activist
EDUCATION:  B.A., Boston University
FAMILY: Single

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is perhaps the most high-profile newcomer to join Congress in 2018. She shocked the political world and became a new face for the Democratic Party’s progressive front after upsetting Democratic Caucus Chairman Joseph Crowley in the primary. 

Ocasio-Cortez, a self-described democratic socialist, became a fundraising phenom for the party and a political name.

The former bartender and local organizer for Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) 2016 presidential campaign has since toured the country, supporting Democratic candidates in other races.

She easily coasted to victory in the general election in the deeply blue district that includes parts of the Bronx and Queens.

At 29, she will be the youngest serving member of Congress and is the youngest woman ever elected to Congress.

A New York City native, she was born in the Bronx to two parents of Puerto Rican origin and still has relatives on the U.S. territory. She studied at Boston University and after college returned to New York.

Rep.-elect Antonio Delgado (D-N.Y.-19)

DATE OF BIRTH: Jan. 19, 1977
RESIDENCE:  Rhinebeck, N.Y.
OCCUPATION: Lawyer
EDUCATION: B.A., Colgate University; M.A., University of Oxford; J.D., Harvard University
FAMILY: Wife, Lacey; two sons

Antonio Delgado defeated GOP Rep. John Faso to flip New York’s 19th Congressional District after a hotly fought race.

The fight drew national attention after Republicans tried to use Delgado’s brief career as a musician against him, drawing attention to his lyrics and labeling him a “big-city rapper.”

But Delgado overcame six rivals in the Democratic primary before unseating Faso.

Delgado, who has never held public office, is an upstate New York native, born and raised in Schenectady, N.Y. He graduated from Colgate University before becoming a Rhodes Scholar and studying at University of Oxford and later Harvard Law School.

After finishing his education, Delgado briefly performed as a hip-hop artist, releasing an album in 2007. He was also chief executive of Statik Entertainment before joining the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld as an associate.

Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.-25)

DATE OF BIRTH: April 29, 1957
RESIDENCE: Irondequoit, N.Y.
OCCUPATION: State lawmaker
EDUCATION: B.A., State University of New York, Geneseo
FAMILY: Wife, Mary Beth; three children

Rep. Joe Morelle will be filling the seat held by the late longtime New York Rep. Louise Slaughter (D) in the state’s 25th Congressional District. Slaughter, an icon of Empire State politics, died at the age of 88 in March, after serving in Congress since 1987.

The district will now be represented by another lawmaker with a long history of public service.

Morelle is coming to Washington after more than 27 years as a member of the New York State Assembly. He has served as the Democratic majority leader since 2014.

A native of upstate New York, Morelle was born in Utica and raised in the town of Irondequoit.

After graduating from the State University of New York at Geneseo with a degree in political science, Morelle worked as a sales manager at a laundry business.

In 1983, he won election to the Monroe County legislature and remained in that position until 1990, when he was elected to the New York State Assembly.