Darializa Avila Chevalier raises $350K with majority out-of-state donations

Congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, a Democrat backed by DSA leader Zohran Mamdani, has raised roughly $350,000 in donations between April 1 and June 3. More than 60% of that amount came from donors outside New York, including over $80,000 from California and a $7,500 contribution from former Ocasio‑Cortez chief‑of‑staff Saikat Chakrabarti.

Around $118,000 of the recent haul arrived after Mamdani publicly endorsed Chevalier on May 28. Although she pledged not to accept real‑estate industry money, the campaign took in more than $8,000 linked to that sector, with $3,500 each from Long Island builder Syed M. Razvi and broker Faraz Khan. Over half of the contributions were high‑value donations exceeding $2,500.

Chevalier, a Florida native and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, is challenging incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat in a district covering parts of Manhattan and the Bronx. Espaillat raised over $740,000 in the same period, bringing his total fundraising in the cycle to just above $2 million.

The candidate has also faced criticism for social‑media posts calling the United States a “f—king disgrace” and labeling President Joe Biden a “rapist,” comments the former president has denied. Mamdani said he had not seen those posts before endorsing her.