Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez upsets Joe Crowley in New York congressional primary

One of Washington DC's most powerful politicians has been toppled from his job by a 28-year-old woman who was working as a bartender a few months ago.

Congressman Joe Crowley is the current Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, making him the fourth highest ranked Democrat in the House of Representatives.

But Crowley suffered a shock upset in the Democratic primary held for his seat in New York.

The victor is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a millennial who worked as an organiser for Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign.

Ocasio-Cortez is a self-described socialist who updates her Instagram feed on her own phone.

Underrated candidate

Ocasio-Cortez, who defeated Crowley 58 percent to 42 percent, was working at a Brooklyn cocktail bar in November last year.

She had never been elected to public office before, and only a few months ago was a total unknown.

Her shock at the scale of her victory rendered her speechless, with live footage from NY1 showing the 28-year-0ld stunned at the results as a reporter tried to interview her.

But nobody seemed to underestimate her chances more than Crowley, who is also the current chair of the Queens County Democratic Party.

Crowley blew off two debates with Ocasio-Cortez, earning him a scathing critique in the New York Times.

"What are we, chopped liver?" the editorial asked.

Crowley was widely considered a likely choice for Speaker in coming years, the most powerful gig in Congress.

Salt on the wound

Soon after Crowley's shock loss became apparent, President Donald Trump could not resist taking a swing.

It's unlikely being nicer to Trump would have helped Crowley win his primary.

Ocasio-Cortez ran well to Crowley's left in the primary, and New York's 14^th Congressional District, is one of the most heavily Democratic parts of the US.

Trump got just 20 percent of the vote in the district, which contains parts of Queens and the Bronx.

As a result, Ocasio-Cortez is all but guaranteed to be elected in November, making her the youngest member of Congress.