Ayanna Pressley’s leap from the Boston City Council to the halls of the U.S. Congress is official, with voters Tuesday night helping her over the final formal hurdle to become the next representative of the 7th Congressional District.
The Associated Press did not provide a vote total for Pressley's race because she didn’t have a Republican opponent in the general election.
“Tonight, is just the beginning,” Pressley told a roaring crowd of Democrats gathered at the Fairmont Copley Plaza for an election night celebration. “We are the party of workers’ rights and immigrant rights and women rights and people of color. And we are the party of survivor’s rights. And for all those reasons we don’t have to wait our turn, we don’t have to wait for change. Change is on the way.”
Pressley was one of more than a dozen candidates that gathered at the downtown Boston Hotel, including incumbent Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who emerged victorious and gubernatorial hopeful Jay Gonzalez and running mate Quentin Palfrey who lost.
A Chicago native, Pressley worked for Rep. Joe Kennedy II and then Sen. John Kerry. In 2009, she won an at-large city councilor seat, becoming the first-ever African-American woman to do so. Now, as congresswoman-elect, she will be the first and only minority woman in the Massachusetts delegation.
“It is all very surreal, and the historical significance of my win is certainly not lost on me,” she told WGBH News in an interview before the election. “It’s hard to believe, in a 230-year history of our Commonwealth, we never had a person of color to represent us in the House of Representatives.”
In September, Pressley handily defeated veteran incumbent Rep. Michael Capuano by 18 points, a victory that shocked the state’s political class and drew comparisons to an earlier upset in New York by Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez who defeated the entrenched Joe Crowley.
And the shock of that night still hasn’t worn off.
“In all truth, I haven’t had a moment yet to really connect to the gravity of this awesome honor … or even this awesome accomplishment,” said Presley who also credited her family for her victory.
Her win, like Cortez’s, turned Pressley into an overnight political celebrity, which she used to help boost Democrats running tough races both in Massachusetts and in other states.
Pressley's ascendance to the Congress will keep her busy over the next few weeks, she said, with congressional orientations and housing hunting in the nation’s capital atop her to-do list.
As an incoming freshman congresswoman, Pressley’s first vote could be critical in deciding the fate of current House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi — a lawmaker who has divided Democrats and become a pariah for Republicans. Pressley would not say whether she supports the California Democrat in becoming speaker again. Instead she described herself as being “uncommitted” — at least until the impact of election night is fully understood.
“I think they're a lot of takeaways that we need to take stock of both for the preservation and the growth of this party and this electorate, particularly heading into 2020,” she said. "Then, after we do that, then we can have a conversation about who should be our leader or speaker."
If she had a choice in House committee assignments, Pressley said Education and Workforce, as well as the powerful Judiciary committee, appealed to her the most. In an interview with the Bay State Banner, Pressley expressed support for the impeachment of President Donald Trump, a process that would begin in the Judiciary Committee if Democrats pursued the constitutional procedure.
Overall, Pressley said she’s excited to propose and co-sponsor legislation that will help benefit her district, which encompasses parts of Boston, Cambridge, and Milton and includes Somerville, Chelsea, and Randolph. She said her goal in Congress is to have residents of the 7th District “cooperatively govern” with her on solutions to issues of inequity in, among others, transportation, criminal justice and health care.
Pressley also said gun violence, an issue specific to her district, is a top priority. Calling it an “epidemic,” she said she wants Congress to acknowledge gun violence as a public health crisis. “I’m looking forward to taking that on with a bigger platform and wider bandwidth and greater tools available to me,” she said.
Asked if she’s spoken to her predecessor, Rep. Mike Capuano, Pressley said that she’s had at least one conversation with him and plans to have more.
“He’s committed, as am I, to making sure that this is a productive and smooth transition, to assure that I am well positioned to be successful and to deliver to the residents for the Massachusetts Seventh,” she said.
According the city charter, Pressley's impending departure from the council means the next place finisher from the last municipal election will take her post. Perennial candidate, Althea Garrison, 79, was fifth place runner-up in the 2017 race and will be offered the post once Pressley steps down, making her the oldest member of the 13-person body.
