Josefa Velasquez, The City

Josefa Velasquez is a senior reporter for The City, a non-for-profit news outlet looking to promote accountability within New York City. She was previously an investigative reporter for Sludge, an online news outlet founded in 2018 that focuses primarily on lobbying and money in politics. At Sludge, Velasquez focused on the connections between campaign money and Legislature being proposed. Her articles have tackled issues from ICE funding in each state to Facebook ads targeting female Baby Boomers to sway their opinions regarding Brett Kavanaugh. Prior to working at Sludge, Velasquez was a reporter at Politico where she wrote on politics and healthcare. Her articles at Politico ranged from the economic impact of medical marijuana in New York State to the endorsements of particular candidates during the 2018 midterms. Velasquez’s professional career has been dedicated to keeping government honest and transparent. While working at the New York Law Journal, Velasquez exposed politicians who were accused of corruption or any arrests involving elected officials.