Recognize Alexandra Hunt from TikTok? The former stripper turned congressional candidate is breaking boundaries and using her platform to tackle systemic inequality
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) October 12, 2021
(with @ahunt4congress) pic.twitter.com/6yPWV2xT2H
Alexandra Hunt’s campaign to unseat Dwight Evans (D, PA-3) in the 2022 Democratic Primary, got a boost on October 4, when The Lily (A product of The Washington Post, The Lily is a destination for stories central to the everyday lives of millennial women) ran a feature about her.
The Lily wrote – Although she wants to focus her campaign on policy, Hunt knew before launching it that her stint stripping nearly a decade ago could become a talking point for voters. Before the pandemic, and before she decided to run for Congress, Hunt had no plans to tell anyone she’d danced in college, she said. For many former sex workers, the stigma makes carrying a secret the simpler option. But running a campaign means becoming a public figure, and for Hunt, there was never really a question about including that chapter of her story. “I was in community and in conversation and connection with sex workers before I launched, and they said, ‘Don’t leave us behind,’ ” she said.
If the success of a congressional campaign depended solely on the size of a candidate’s Tik Tok following, then Evans would be in big trouble. Hunt currently has 45,200 followers on that platform (and 680,200 “Likes”), whereas Evans doesn’t even have a Tik Tok page. She also boasts 6,880 Twitter followers.
Hunt is positioning herself to the left of Evans. She supports Medicare for All and wants to place a 2% Wealth Tax on all Americans who have net worths of greater than $50,000,000.
In her official campaign video, Hunt takes several shots at Evans, claiming that “my opponent campaigned on universal healthcare, yet failed to vote for Medicare for All. She also cites Evans’ support of charter schools, which Hunt says that “took voice away from educators and parents and led to further segregation within our school system.”