Democrat Nydia Velázquez will not seek reelection next year after 34 years in Congress, saying, “the time is right for me to move on and for a new generation of leaders to step forward.”

Velázquez, 72, the first Puerto Rican woman to serve in Congress, said representing the people of New York City has been the “privilege of a lifetime.”

Why It Matters

Elected in 1993, the pioneering Velázquez, nicknamed “La Luchadora,” Spanish for "The Fighter," spent much of her political career focused on immigrants and the needs of working-class New Yorkers.

Close to Democratic U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a fellow elected New York leader of Puerto Rican descent, Velázquez endorsed 34-year-old NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in June’s primaries, while most Democratic colleagues s

See Full Page