Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro Says He Disagrees With Primary Winner Darializa Avila Chevalier

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said Thursday he has profound differences with Darializa Avila Chevalier, the democratic socialist who defeated Rep. Adriano Espaillat in Tuesday’s Democratic primary. Cnn reported that Shapiro made the comments in an interview with Dana Bash.

The primary focused on the US-Israel relationship. Chevalier, 32, attended a pro-Palestinian rally on October 8, 2023, the day after Hamas’ attack that killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages. CNN’s KFile found a deleted X account belonging to Chevalier containing thousands of posts supporting abolishing police, prisons and borders, seizing private property, nationalizing major industries, and questioning Israel’s right to exist.

Shapiro stated, “Her district voted for her. ” He added that she is not someone he would agree with on many things or share similar values with. Chevalier helped lead campus protests at Columbia University over Israel and its treatment of Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 70,000 have died since the start of the war.

In a debate, she compared the use of tear gas in Gaza in 2014 to that used on Black protesters in Ferguson in 2014. She said she would never celebrate the death of any human being and attended the rally to protest an outsized reaction to the attack. Brad Lander, another candidate, said the rally spoke about Hamas in ways that were vile.

Shapiro, who is running for reelection this fall, said Democrats were ready to have a battle over what they believe in.