How Representative Yassamin Ansari Will Get It Done

In our limited series “How I’ll Get It Done,” rising progressive stars tell the Cut how they plan to fight for a better future.

Arizona may have voted to send Donald Trump back to the White House, but voters in the state’s Third Congressional District also elected Yassamin Ansari, the first Iranian American Democrat to ever serve and the youngest new member of the incoming Congress. The 32-year-old Arizona native and daughter of immigrants already has a long political résumé. She caught the political bug in high school while working to elect Barack Obama to his first term. By 2014, she was a climate adviser at the United Nations who worked with the team that delivered the Paris Agreement. She then traded policy for politics after being incensed by Trump’s first term, and in 2020 she became the youngest woman ever elected to the Phoenix City Council.

Yet for all her wins, Ansari hasn’t done much celebrating. Instead, she’s gearing up to defend her majority-Latino district from Trump’s pledge to carry out mass deportations on day one. Climate change is also high on her list of priorities. “Phoenix is one of the fastest-growing cities that is also severely impacted by climate catastrophes like heat and drought,” she says. Last summer alone, her district saw temperatures as high as 118 degrees, and more than 300 people likely died due to heat-related illnesse. The stakes couldn’t be higher, and the incoming administration couldn’t care less, which is why Ansari is already hard at work. Just two weeks after winning her seat, she was elected House Democrats’ freshman class president.

The Cut spoke with Ansari about preparing for Trump 2.0, generational battles on Capitol Hill, and what it was like to win her race on a night when her party overwhelmingly lost.

How was Election Night for you? You won and so did Senator-elect Ruben Gallego, whose seat you now hold. But the Democratic Party as a whole lost your state and the White House. What was it like to experience that all at the same time?

It was a gut punch for me. I was elected in a pretty safe Democratic seat, so that excitement already happened for me in August after the primary. But as someone who was inspired to run for office following Trump’s first election, the fact that the country voted for him again was devastating. We also faced a couple of significant losses in Arizona. We didn’t know on Election Night, but at the county level, we pretty much lost everything. Elections in Maricopa County will now be overseen by someone who doesn’t believe in the election system. The incoming sheriff is a disciple of Joe Arpaio. And these are seats we used to win, that we flipped in 2016. It’s not that Republicans keep winning these seats. We lost them after having won them back.

What lessons did you learn campaigning in a swing state that Democrats desperately need to win in 2028?  

We have to demonstrate to people that we not only have the policies that are going to support them, but can show results. I came from the Phoenix City Council and served as vice-mayor of the city. When I ran, I pointed to areas where I delivered tangible change and improved people’s daily lives. For example, the lack of housing is the No. 1 issue facing Phoenix. That’s why I led the charge to legalize the building of accessory dwelling units, or casitas, on family lots. I built new emergency shelter beds to get people off the streets and into safe housing. I focused on my City Council work meeting concrete needs, like park improvements or roadway safety infrastructure. We’ve got to show people that their elected officials can get things done for them.

Okay, pivoting from the dark pit that was the 2024 election. How was orientation?

Coming off Election Night, I was feeling severely depressed. Going to orientation gave me something to focus on. I’m really inspired by my class. We have a number of historic firsts but also just smart, passionate people. There are 34 of us, and we all bonded pretty quickly, which makes sense when you’re spending 12 to 14 hours a day together for two weeks straight. They made a group chat for us, but I created one specifically for our classmates following orientation. There’s also a group chat for Democratic women in Congress. I didn’t expect it to be so active, but it is, and we talk about everything from commutes to the chaos created by Elon Musk.

What prompted you to run for freshman class president for incoming House Democrats? What do you hope to achieve? 

I am a naturally extroverted person who values strong human connection. I befriend the people I work with. I want to make sure that outside of work people feel bonded. I want to create opportunities outside of our very stressful jobs where people feel supported. We have people who are already having to worry about their next election because they flipped a seat, and we’ll make sure they have help navigating that.

Has it been hard transitioning from candidate to elected official in such a volatile political climate? What have been your top priorities? 

My district office is staffing up, and we’ve been most focused on preparing for Trump’s pledge around mass deportations. We’re working with legal-aid groups to determine how we’re going to inform our community about their rights, and how best to get resources into our communities where the federal government might not be able to help. We just hired a couple of case workers who have great experience with immigration. I’ve been meeting with lawyers and nonprofits. We just set up our transition team as well. We have a couple of experts on this topic, and this will be one of the first listening sessions that we do in the New Year.

The Trump administration has all but promised to strip women of their bodily autonomy, health, and dignity. How does it feel to know you’ll be the youngest Democratic woman in Congress? What insight do you think you can bring?

It’s important to show that the Democratic Party is willing to invest in young people and take their issues seriously. I have a duty to be myself, while also being a serious legislator and member of the chamber. I can show my love for Taylor Swift while working on legislation that impacts communities around the country. You can be fun but also taken seriously. My generation is embracing that being powerful or accomplished doesn’t look the same as it used to.

On that note of letting young women lead, what was your reaction to Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s failed bid to lead Democrats on the Oversight Committee? Do you think Establishment Democrats are willing to hand the reins over to a younger generation? 

From my understanding of those contested races, AOC’s bid was a shift in the right direction. While the outcome may seem disappointing, what was accomplished by her running and earning significant support from the caucus shows that a shift is happening. There are more young members than ever before. AOC came into office in 2018 with a wave of young women who inspired me to run for office. Now, in my class, we have multiple women in their 30s. So, I think we’re going to see a change over the next couple of years. Just look at Representative Greg Casar, who just became the head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus at 35.

What will you miss most about living and working in Phoenix full time? 

Even though we are the fifth-largest and fastest-growing city in the country, Phoenix still has a small-town feel. I live downtown, and I could be walking around my block and am always running into friends or co-workers. I will miss the City Council. When you’re elected at the local level, you are closest to the people and you have a more direct impact on their daily lives. You can also do things more quickly. Congress will be very different, especially the Congress I’m entering. But I intend to counter that by running a hyperlocal office. We have plans to be proactive in terms of hosting events, having me be present and active and visible.

What are you looking toward or relying on to stay motivated and energized during your first term? 

My team, for sure. It’s a team of young, diverse, smart, passionate people who reflect the district and are choosing to be in public service because they think it matters. The reason I decided to go into public service is because of my parents. They are both immigrants from Iran and they left a brutal regime. Their lives and mine would have been drastically different in the worst way possible if they hadn’t been able to immigrate here. They worked hard, achieved the American dream, and always taught me never to take democracy for granted. Even amid the chaos and exhausting nature of politics, I take that with me every single day.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.