Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York made a surprise revelation to a progressive Jewish group on the final night of Hannukah on Sunday: She traces her ancestry back to 15th-century Sephardic Jews.
Speaking at an event organized by Jews for Racial and Economic Justice at the Jackson Heights Jewish Center in Queens, the rising Democratic star drew cheers with the revelation, which she told Haaretz was the first time she had spoken publicly about her family's Jewish heritage.
"I knew it! I sensed it!" she said, highlighting a member of the audience who reacted to her revelation.