Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), whose relationship with actress Rosario Dawson drew headlines during his 2020 presidential campaign, announced Tuesday that he is engaged to Alexis Lewis, a Los Angeles real estate agent.
Booker announced the news in an Instagram post featuring photos of the couple during a beachside proposal. In the caption, he wrote, “Alexis is one of the greatest unearned blessings of my life. She has transformed me, helping me to ground and center my inner life, and discover the joys of building a nurturing home with someone you love.” The 56-year-old senator added that he was grateful for the support they had received from friends and their wider community, writing that he was “savoring the soul-affirming wonder of everyday life” with Lewis as his partner, best friend, and now fiancée.
According to People magazine, Lewis works as a real estate agent and is not in the public eye. Booker confirmed in a June 2025 appearance on The Shade Room that the two were introduced by a mutual friend. At the time, he admitted he was hesitant due to the distance between them, as she lived in Los Angeles while he split his time between New Jersey and Washington, DC. Booker explained that Lewis’s family roots in D.C. helped make their relationship work.
By August 2025, the senator shared in an interview with Washington Examiner editor David Sivak that he and Lewis had been together for about a year and a half and were living together in Washington. He also recounted a story from the early days of their relationship when she asked him to reveal his TikTok “For You” page, which he described as a humorous moment that showed his “nerdy” interests in food and animal videos.
Booker previously spoke about his hopes for marriage and family. In June, he said he had “very big ambitions to get married,” explaining, “I want to be married, I still want to have kids.” Reflecting on past relationships, he noted that his focus as Newark’s mayor often came at the expense of his personal life, but that he now saw meaningful relationships as a source of strength, not distraction.
His comments followed years of public interest in his personal life, particularly his high-profile relationship with actress Rosario Dawson during his 2020 presidential campaign. Dawson first acknowledged they were dating in March 2019, telling TMZ she was grateful to be with someone she “respects and admires so much.” That summer, she joined Booker on the campaign trail in Nevada for the Fourth of July, appearing with him at the Boulder City Damboree and a Rotary Club breakfast, their first joint appearance at campaign events.
Around the same time, Booker hinted he could propose to Dawson before 2020, joking on RuPaul’s talk show that “you never know what might happen” before the January 2021 inauguration when pressed on if he might remain a bachelor candidate. By September 2019, Dawson publicly endorsed Booker’s presidential bid after initial hesitation, writing on Twitter, “For the record I, of course, endorse @CoryBooker.” She explained that her focus had been on voter registration and the census through Voto Latino but clarified that she stood behind Booker’s candidacy.
Tuesday’s announcement drew congratulatory messages from colleagues, including Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), who wrote, “Congratulations on your engagement, brother @SenBooker! Wishing you and Alexis a blessed marriage.” Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ) also extended their best wishes.
Others offered more speculative reactions. The New York Post described Lewis as a “Rosario Dawson look-alike,” referencing Booker’s previous relationship with the actress. On X media, some users speculated about the timing of the engagement, with one writing, “They’re getting Cory Booker ready for a VP run,” while others poked fun at his celebratory photos, asking if his visible excitement was “authentic emotion” or jokingly referring to him as a “big spender” due to the size of the engagement ring.
Booker addressed political speculation days earlier at a town hall in Paramus, New Jersey, where he was questioned about a possible 2028 presidential campaign. He stated that his focus remained on running for reelection to the Senate in 2026, noting that the presidential race would “take care of itself.”
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