Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez touts importance of young voters at Pittsburgh rally

Progressive firebrand U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rallied with hundreds in Pittsburgh on Sunday, urging young people to vote and remind them of their key role in deciding the presidential race.

Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York and one of the youngest members of Congress, spoke for about 15 minutes on Sunday afternoon in a ballroom on the Carnegie Mellon University campus and campaigned on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris .

She related to the young voters in the crowd and said Harris offers them a better and more hopeful future compared to former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.

"We had to grow up watching our planet burn and people do nothing about it because of the gun lobby and the fossil fuel industry being too powerful," Ocasio-Cortez said. "We grew up with people not being able to afford rent or prescription drugs ... and we couldn't do anything about it. But now we are voting as a population."

Trump is also providing a strong focus on the Pittsburgh region. He is campaigning in Western Pennsylvania on Monday, visiting Westmoreland County early in the afternoon and then rallying at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in the evening.

At the CMU campus, Ocasio-Cortez was joined by local politicians Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey, Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato, and U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale. They all warned that a second Trump administration would rollback protections for abortion access, the environment, and gun reform, and pushed the student voters to back Harris to make progress on those issues.

"We are going to knock every door in Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania, and then we are never going to hear about Donald Trump again," Ocasio-Cortez said to applause from the crowd.

The ballroom was filled with about 350 students and supporters, according to the Harris-Walz campaign. The supporters were served sandwiches from Primanti Bros. restaurant, a Pittsburgh staple.

Ocasio-Cortez's message was broadcast in front of a welcoming audience.

Rachelle Atchina, a freshman at the University of Pittsburgh from Reading, said she is a big fan of Ocasio-Cortez and her support for Harris is a big reason why Atchina is voting for the vice president this fall.

Maddie Balestier, a Pitt freshman from Lancaster County, said November will be her first time voting. Balestier said she is supporting Harris and is ready for a woman to be president, and thinks sending Trump back to the White House would be a big mistake.

"I think Trump is scary and dangerous and I don't want to put him in office," she said.

Lee pumped up the crowd before Ocasio-Cortez took the stage. She reminded them how crucial every vote is in Pittsburgh.

Pennsylvania, with its 19 Electoral College votes, is the biggest swing state in the nation . The commonwealth's last two presidential elections have been decided by about one percentage point.

"Young voices are not the voice of the future. You guys are the voices of right now," Lee said, noting that Gen Z and Millenials now make up the largest voting block in the country..

Ocasio-Cortez said young voters' priorities will rest on issues like holding the Supreme Court reform, gun safety measures, LGBTQ rights, action on climate change, and protecting abortion access.

James Merigo, a 20-year-old Chatham University student from Washington County, said protecting abortion access is important for him and the women in his life. He said Lee, Ocasio-Cortez, and others lobbying for his vote is important.

"It means they care about people like me and they want to make sure our voices are heard," Merigo said.