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Rep. Adriano Espaillat Announces He's Skipping the Inauguration

By Carolina Pichardo | January 16, 2017 12:30pm
 Congressman Adriano Espaillat said he will not be attending Donald Trump's inauguration.
Congressman Adriano Espaillat said he will not be attending Donald Trump's inauguration.
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DNAinfo/Jill Colvin

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — Newly-elected Rep. Adriano Espaillat joins the legions of officials boycotting the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump.

Espaillat, who became the first Dominican-American elected to Congress in November, said he won’t be attending the inauguration on Sunday afternoon, after President-Elect Donald Trump attacked Rep. John Lewis via a series of tweets.

Several New York officials have announced they’re boycotting the inauguration, the New York Daily News reports, adding to a list of Democrats from across the country.

Espaillat did not respond to a request to comment on his decision to not attend the event. 

Espaillat spent Saturday at the #WeShallNotBeMoved March in Washington D.C. with other elected officials, including state Sen. Marisol Alcantara and the Rev. Al Sharpton, who organized the event as part of the National Action Network (NAN). 

The event was organized, according to the NAN website, to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and “to put the next Administration (and the nation) on notice that there are some things that will not be changed no matter who is president and what party dominates the House and Senate.”

Several residents congratulated and applauded Espaillat’s announcement, stating they thank the Congressman for “standing on the right side of history.”

Espaillat held three town halls on Sunday to talk to residents in the Bronx, Harlem and Northern Manhattan about the Affordable Care Act and how the upcoming changes could impact residents.