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Cathy Rojas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cathy Rojas (born October 1991) is a Colombian-American educator and political activist who was the Party for Socialism and Liberation's candidate for mayor of New York City in the 2021 election. A public school teacher by trade, Rojas received around 2.5% of the vote in the mayoral election, placing third.

Early life

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Rojas was born in the early 1990s to two Colombian immigrants in Queens, New York. She speaks English and Spanish. Her father was an auto body painter, and her mother a housekeeper. She experienced racism from a young age, and in public school was made aware of the fact that students were expelled or arrested instead of being offered the mental health services. Rojas became a socialist after reading The Autobiography of Malcolm X in high school. She worked as a hostess, a waitress, a bartender, and a cook before becoming a teacher.[1][2]

Mayoral campaign

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Rojas launched her mayoral campaign on June 28, 2021, in front of the First Spanish United Methodist Church in East Harlem, a church known for its occupation by the Young Lords in 1969. She ran on a hard leftist and socialist platform.[3]

Rojas did not qualify for the mayoral debates due to her poor fundraising numbers, and led a protest where the debate was held.[1][4]

Rojas was endorsed by Julia Salazar, a New York state senator, former City Council candidates Moumita Ahmed and Carolyn Tran,[5] and Kristin Richardson Jordan, an activist and council member.

Rojas received 27,982 votes, or 2.49% in the election, which was easily won by Democrat Eric Adams.[6]

Electoral record

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2021 New York City mayoral election[7][8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Eric Adams 753,801 66.99% +0.82%
Republican Curtis Sliwa 302,680 26.90% +2.95%
Independent Curtis Sliwa 9,705 0.86% N/A
Total Curtis Sliwa 312,385 27.76% +0.17%
Socialism and Liberation Cathy Rojas 27,982 2.49% N/A
Conservative Bill Pepitone 12,575 1.12% −2.13%
Empowerment Quanda S. Francis 3,792 0.34% N/A
Libertarian Stacey Prussman 3,189 0.28% +0.04%
Humanity United Raja Flores 2,387 0.21% N/A
Save Our City Fernando Mateo 1,870 0.17% N/A
Out Lawbreaker Skiboky Stora 264 0.02% N/A
Write-in 7,013 0.62%
Total votes 1,125,258 100.0%
Democratic hold

References

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  1. ^ a b Nichols, John (November 2021). "Meet the Socialist Candidate for NYC Mayor". The Nation.
  2. ^ "Cathy Rojas Offers Working-Class New Yorkers an Alternative".
  3. ^ "Socialist Cathy Rojas announces run for New York City mayor". Liberation News.
  4. ^ "Socialist barred from NYC major debate". Liberation News.
  5. ^ "Endorsement Watch".
  6. ^ "Results of the General Election". Spectrum News.
  7. ^ "General Election 2021 Contest List" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. September 15, 2021.
  8. ^ "Statement and Return Report | for Certification | General Election 2021 - 11/02/2021 | Crossover - All Parties and Independent Bodies" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. November 29, 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 1, 2021. Retrieved December 1, 2021.