Incoming freshman during a visit to capitol hill. Representative elect espaillat, tell us your background. Rep. Elect espaillat i am a former state senator in new york and i will now represent the 13th Congressional District including harlem and the northwest bronx. Today is the birthday of who first represented this district 70 plus years ago. I am happy to be representing this district. It is diverse. I am the first dominican republican member to be elected across the country. I am looking forward to working with everyone. Why do you think that is important . That you were the first dominican republican elected into office. Rep. Elect espaillat everyone aspires to have government to be a reflection of the demographics across the country. Everyone wants a government they can identify with. Folks from their own background that is very american to have a diverse government. In fact, i think that is the strength of our government. What about your work at the state level how will that help you in washington . Rep. Elect espaillat i bring the tools, being a minority in the senate, to come to washington and get things done. There are a lot of areas that we can Work Together to bring jobs to the districts with good paying salaries. Immigration reform is still an important issue that we must address. We must not let that be in our past. It is part of our present. Education and housing are Critical Issues across the district. I hope to tackle these issues while being a minority in congress. We want to hear peoples ideas and make them part of the solution. You are filling a seat that was emptied by retiring charlie wrangle. How do you hope to build on his legacy . Rep. Elect espaillat the lion of lenox avenue. Those are two legends in congress that walked these halls. These are big shoes to fill. But i bring my own vision, energy, a new insight into what the district wants. People are ready to turn the page and see a new Dynamic Development that is exciting. I will bring that with me and i hope to be just as good if not better than they were. They certainly contributed a lot to the nation and this district and i hope i can bring everyone together again under the same tent and make things happen positively. Affordability continues to be a major hurdle. You did challenge representative wrangle in the primaries in 2012 and 2014. You lost. What lessons did you learn . Rep. Elect espaillat i was taught not to mess with the lion from lenox avenue. He showed his realm of experience. It is something to learn from. He is a wealth of knowledge and i look forward to being his ally and he is my mentor right now. He has shown me around congress and he is walking around, getting me to meet the right people so i can be an effective legislator for everyone. What advice has he given you . Rep. Elect espaillat come in early and leave late. Work the midnight hours. Make sure you get things done. And either in the Early Morning hours of the morning or late at night. I will be a workhorse for the district. Gentrification is also impacting our district. Tell us about your family. Will they be joining you . Rep. Elect espaillat i have a twoyearold grandson and my children are both grown. They will be staying back. I hope to bring my twoyearold grandson to see the capitol. I know when i came as a young boy, nine years old to first visit the capital, i could not even speak a word of english. I came here with my school. Such a monumental place. And now i am here as a member of congress. Great nation and great story. Did you always want to serve . Rep. Elect espaillat i have always had it in me to be a servant. My grandmother made me go to the hospital with her to translate for doctors visits. I was involved in the summer youth program. In college, i studied Political Science and came out and became a state legislator. I served 14 years in the assembly and the last six years in the state senate. What impact did your grandmother have on you . Rep. Elect espaillat tremendous. She was a great worker with a great work ethic with great personal integrity. She is still very much the person that we look to even though she is not with us, when we have tough times. What would you like to do out here . What are some of the fights that you will wage here in washington . Rep. Elect espaillat the Affordable Care act to preserve it. There will be an attempt to assault it. It has good provisions in it for people with preexisting conditions, for young people who are still part of their families, there are worthy, meritorious clauses in the Affordable Care act that need to be preserved. There is hostile rhetoric prevailing during the campaign. We must worry about immigration and what will happen to over 12 Million People that are here undocumented. People who are a very important part still of our economy. I want to be their champion. That their story is not left behind. We cannot put our heads in the sand. And pretend they are not there or that they should be sent back home. Why . What is it from your Life Experience that makes you want to wage that fight . Rep. Elect espaillat i came here with no papers myself and now i am a member of congress. We are fighting for the spirit of america. Once, a long time ago, when i was a little boy in the dominican republic, the stories were that the streets were paved with gold and anything was possible. We came here, overstayed our visa, we became citizens and i became a member of the state legislature. And now i am a member of congress. Great americans have walked these halls. This is a great nation that should provide opportunities for all. We should not be isolated from the rest of the world. We should be leaders in the world. Why did your family come here and make that decision to overstay their visa . Rep. Elect espaillat like many other immigrants, we wanted to do better for ourselves. Our grandparents were here and our family was here. We found this to be an equal opportunity for growth. Our parents thought we would do better as kids in the united states. We are very proud of that and i am an even prouder american. How old were you when you came . Rep. Elect espaillat i was nine years old. I remember crossing the bridge from the jfk airport to new york and seeing all of the lights and all that the city had to offer