US Representative Ilhan Omar secured the Democratic Party’s nomination after losses in party primaries by two fellow members of a group nicknamed “The Squad,” according to Reuters.
Omar defeated former Minneapolis City council member Don Samuels in the Democratic Party primary in Minnesota’s 5th District. She beat Samuels by a 56.2%-42.9% margin, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State’s tally.
According to federal campaign disclosures, she raised $6.8 million after the 2022 election, more than double the re-election fundraising of a typical House member and significantly more than Samuels’ $1.4 million. Ryan Dawkins, a political science professor at Minnesota’s Carleton College, noted:
Because Omar had a tough primary last cycle [the 2022 election], she was prepared this time around with a strong ground game and excellent fundraising numbers that far outpaced Samuels.
The Minnesota lawmaker, one of four progressive women whose 2018 election created The Squad, is expected to win the November 5 election. Control of Congress will be at stake as Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump seek the presidency.
Fellow Squad members Representatives Jamaal Bowman of New York and Cori Bush of Missouri have lost their party primaries over the past few months. They faced opponents who received significant support from the pro-Israel fundraising group AIPAC.
Democrats’ position
Bowman, Bush, and Omar opposed President Joe Biden’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza.
They also reflect that the Democratic Party has abandoned some of its most left-leaning ideas, such as calling for government-backed health care for all Americans or talking about ending police funding. The absence of a significant 2024 Democratic primary before Biden withdrew his candidacy last month, handing the torch to Harris, meant that more left-leaning candidates, such as independent Senator Bernie Sanders, did not participate in the debates.
Ilhan Omar and some other team members voted against several of Biden’s priorities, including a $1 trillion infrastructure bill taking effect in 2021. They objected mainly because it was not aligned with the bill to expand social programmes, including child care, as promised.
Omar, who came to the United States as a refugee from Somalia, describes her politics as ” visionary, bold and loud”. She stated that she had allocated millions of dollars in federal funds for community development in her district.
She faced criticism for anti-Semitic remarks, and in 2023, House Republicans voted to remove her from the Foreign Affairs Committee over a 2019 social media post. It said supporters of Israel were motivated by money, not principles. Omar subsequently apologised for the post.
