Democratic socialist and Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York announced Thursday that issues like finding an apartment in Washington, D.C., before receiving her congressional salary are “very real.”
“I have three months without a salary before I’m a member of Congress, so how do I get an apartment?” Ocasio-Cortez said to The New York Times. “Those little things are very real.”
However, she noted that she and her partner have been saving money since before leaving her job as a bartender in New York.
“We’re kind of just dealing with the logistics of it day by day,” said Ocasio-Cortez. “I’ve really been just kind of squirreling away and then hoping that gets me to January.”
While Ocasio-Cortez told the NYT that she “can’t really take a salary,” filings by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show that she has at least taken one “payroll” check during her time as a candidate.
Following the publication of her interview with TheNYT, the Democratic socialist tweeted about the issue.
“There are many little ways in which our electoral system isn’t even designed (nor prepared) for working-class people to lead,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “This is one of them (don’t worry btw – we’re working it out!).”
There are many little ways in which our electoral system isn’t even designed (nor prepared) for working-class people to lead.
This is one of them (don’t worry btw – we’re working it out!)
⬇️ https://t.co/PEQ5ccSDSO— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 8, 2018
