Former CNBC anchor Michelle Caruso-Cabrera announced on Tuesday that she will challenge Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in the Democratic primary for her seat in Congress.
“I am the daughter and granddaughter of working class Italian and Cuban immigrants,” Caruso-Cabrera said in a statement. “I am so lucky to have had such a wonderful career and I want everybody to have the opportunity that I’ve had. That’s why I’m running.”
Caruso-Cabrera has been with CNBC for more than two decades. The network said Tuesday she will no longer appear as a contributor on the network.
Ocasio-Cortez, 30, shocked the political world in 2018 in upsetting 10-term incumbent Joseph Crowley in a Democratic primary for New York’s 14th District, which is located in the Bronx and Queens.
She has since amassed more followers on Twitter than any member of Congress, with more than 6.3 million. For comparison, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who has been in Congress for 33 years, has 3.9 million.
Caruso-Cabrera is the author of the 2010 book, “You Know I’m Right: More Prosperity, Less Government.” The book calls for “fiscal conservatism, limited government and personal responsibility.”