Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez challenger once supported Obama
A 38-year-old Queens woman seeking the GOP line to run against Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is under fire from fellow Republicans for previously praising the Democratic socialist superstar as well as voting for Barack Obama for president.
Scherie Murray, a Jamaican-born woman who grew up in Queens and founded a TV production and advertising company, told The Post she voted for Obama, a Democrat, in both the 2008 and 2012 elections. She said it was because “as a young African American woman” she “was inspired by the first African American president’s message of change.”
Murray also crossed party lines in June 2018 to hail Ocasio-Cortez on social media after the eventual congresswoman upset 10-term incumbent and longtime Queens power broker Joe Crowley in a primary.
“Congratulations Alexandria,” she then tweeted. “#Queens is headed in a new direction and It’s time for new leadership. #Yes.”
Now, a little over a year later, she’s vying for Ocasio-Cortez’s seat representing the state’s 14th District that encompasses parts of Queens and the Bronx. While kicking off her campaign on Wednesday, Murray even released a scathing video accusing the left-wing media darling of “self-promotion over service.”
Some Republican pols say Murray would be a poor choice considering she’s a former Democrat who currently lives outside the district in Laurelton, Queens, switched parties a decade ago and has a history of backing Democrats.
“AOC is a socialist carpetbagger and since Scherie Murray voted for Obama, praised AOC after she won and doesn’t live in the district, it seems like they are two peas in a pod,” said Elizabeth English, a Republican district leader in the Bronx.
“How can Republicans trust either of them? We deserve better.”
see also
Republican Jamaican immigrant is latest to run for AOCs seat
Scherie Murray, a Jamaican-born woman who grew up in Queens…
Click Here: Sports Water Bottles
However, Murray says she’s a loyal Republican who plans on backing Donald Trump for re-election to the White House.
“I voted for President Trump in 2016 and support him today,” she said. “He’s delivered on his promises.”
She also said she was once “hopeful” for the future of the 14th District after Ocasio-Cortez defeated Crowley — but no more.
“She took on a political machine and won,” Murray said. “I was happy Joe Crowley lost, but since then I have been disappointed and disheartened… She’s only been focused on her own celebrity and a politics of division and hate.
“That’s why I’m running for Congress. I’m not another ideologue who is focused on tweets and socialist agendas. I want to unite the fight to help people build bridges to a better life and live their own American dream.”
Murray also said she plans to move into the district if she wins the congressional seat, as is required by law.
She joins four other Republicans — former cop John Cummings, journalist Ruth Papazian, construction contractor Miguel Hernandez and businessman Antoine Tucker — who have filed to run for the seat.
So far, no Democrats have announced a primary challenge to Ocasio-Cortez.
Said GOP candidate Ruth Papazian, “It’s great more women are entering politics, especially on the Republican side, but I care more about a candidate’s policies than about gender or race.
“I could never send Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a congratulatory tweet. My community has no doubt about where I stand: Ocasio-Cortez is a media darling whose socialist policies would bankrupt the middle class. I am running to give people in my district a voice in Congress again. I am from here, for here.”
