‘Squad’ Member Ilhan Omar Wins Primary Election, Avoiding Fate of Bowman, Bush

MINNEAPOLIS — Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, one of the liberal Democratic House members known as the “Squad” and a sharp critic of how Israel has conducted the war in Gaza, has won her primary race in Minnesota.Meanwhile, a conservative populist and former NBA player, Royce White, defeated Navy veteran Joe Fraser in Minnesota’s primary election for the Republican nomination to challenge the incumbent Democrat, Senator Klobuchar, in November.Ms. Omar successfully defended her Minneapolis-area 5th District seat against a repeat challenge from a former Minneapolis City Council member, Don Samuels, a more centrist liberal whom she only narrowly defeated in the 2022 primary.Speaking to supporters in Minneapolis, Ms. Omar echoed some of the themes of the Harris-Walz presidential campaign.Senate candidate Royce White on July 27, 2024 at St. Cloud, Minnesota. AP/Alex Brandon“We run the politics of joy,” she said. “Because we know it is joyful to fight for your neighbors. … We know it is joyful to make sure housing is a human right. We know it is joyful to fight for health care to be a human right. We know it is joyful to want to live in a peaceful and equitable world.”Omar avoided the fate of two fellow Squad members. Representative Cori Bush lost the Democratic nomination in her Missouri district last week, and Representative Jamaal Bowman of New York lost his primary in June. Both faced well-funded challengers and millions of dollars in spending by the United Democracy Project, a super political action committee affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which appeared to sit out the Minnesota race.Ms. Samuels had criticized Ms. Omar’s condemnation of the Israeli government’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war. While Ms. Omar has also criticized Hamas for attacking Israel and taking hostages, Mr. Samuels said she’s one-sided and divisive. He also stressed public safety issues in Minneapolis, where a former police officer murdered George Floyd in 2020.Mr. Samuels said he was “very disappointed” with his loss.“What I was hoping is that a strong ground game and an attention to the details of folks who felt left out would trump an overwhelming superiority in dollars,” he said in an interview. “Clearly money matters a little more in politics than I had hoped.”Ms. Omar reported raising about $6.2 million. Mr. Samuels raised about $1.4 million.Ms. Omar will face Republican Dalia Al-Aqidi, an Iraqi American journalist and self-described secular Muslim who calls Omar pro-Hamas.In the Senate race, Mr. White — an ally of imprisoned former Trump aide Steve Bannon and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones — shocked many political observers when he defeated Mr. Fraser at the party convention for the GOP endorsement.Mr. White’s social media comments have been denounced as misogynistic, homophobic, antisemitic, and profane. He argues that, as a Black man, he can broaden the party’s base by appealing to voters of color in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and others disillusioned with establishment politics.Following his win, Mr. White said in a post on the social platform X: “Bring it on commies… The People Are Coming.”Associated Press

‘Squad’ Member Ilhan Omar Wins Primary Election, Avoiding Fate of Bowman, Bush

‘Squad’ Member Ilhan Omar Wins Primary Election, Avoiding Fate of Bowman, Bush

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