Born in East San Diego County, Ammar is the son of a working-class Latina mother. From his first job in his Christian church ministry, community organizing for a presidential campaign, serving in the White House, advocating for small businesses in Washington, D.C., supporting underserved veterans, to fighting for the American worker at the U.S. Department of Labor, Ammar has devoted his life to service.

Ammar graduated from San Diego State University, with two Bachelor of Arts degrees in Psychology and Philosophy. During his time at SDSU, he served as Deputy Regional Field Director for the Obama campaign, where he helped oversee Southern California’s grassroots operations, with the primary responsibility of establishing a regional office headquarters in San Diego, CA. 

Following the election, Ammar served at the White House in the Executive Office of the President, handling President Obama’s official correspondence sent by American citizens, veterans, world leaders, and CEOs of Fortune 500s. Every day, 10 letters were selected and delivered to President Obama to inform his decisions. Ammar's time at the White House helped him further understand the daily struggles of the American people. 

He then worked at the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC) as Communications and Marketing Director, promoting the economic growth of more than 4 million Hispanic-owned small businesses. Following his time at USHCC, he worked at the U.S. Department of Labor, where he led the Office of Public Affairs for the Employment and Training Administration (ETA). 

Today, Ammar owns ACN Strategies, a small business that helps other small businesses, and nonprofits with small budgets, compete against their larger counterparts. He is also a course lecturer at SDSU, a paid guest lecturer at UCSD and an Academic Civic Engagement Fellow at UCSD. His full focus now is earning the trust of the voters of District 50.

In running for Congress, Ammar is answering the call to service issued in the president's  Farewell Address: “to believe you can make a difference; to hitch your wagon to something bigger than yourselves.  This generation coming up – unselfish, altruistic, creative, patriotic… You believe in a fair, just, inclusive America… you are willing to carry this hard work of democracy forward…I am asking you to believe.  Not in my ability to bring about change – but in yours.”

Ammar believes, and invites you, to join his people-powered movement.

Jose Cortes is a socialist revolutionary, proud Chicano and worker who was raised in Lakeside. His father graduated from El Cajon High School and his mom and sister both teach at a school in the 50th district. Cortes himself was working at a school in the 50th district when the murder of unarmed black man Alfred Olango by the El Cajon Police Department and subsequent militarized police response to community protests awakened his political consciousness. During that spontaneous uprising he met organizers with the Party for Socialism and Liberation and decided to join to fight for revolutionary change. 

Since 2016, Jose has also become an anti-war organizer with The A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism). He was instrumental in rescinding the ban on feeding the homeless in Wells Park in 2018 and also participated in the community defense of historic landmark Chicano Park against white supremacists and neo-nazis who tried to vandalize the murals. Jose has experience in the nonprofit sector with A.C.C.E. (Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment), where he lobbied lawmakers in Sacramento, lead rallies and marches, and canvassed thousands of people in San Diego for rent control and affordable housing. He has achieved positive results for the working class already by organizing in the streets-- if elected, he will be able to take that fight to the halls of congress where rich politicians aren’t typically held accountable.