Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., fended off several primary challengers Tuesday, NBC News projects, a victory for progressives after two of her fellow members of the “squad” suffered defeats this summer.
Omar defeated former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels, who lost to her by just 2 percentage points in the 2022 primary, and two other challengers in Minnesota’s 5th District.
Reps. Jamaal Bowman, of New York, and Cori Bush, of Missouri — also members of the progressive “squad” of lawmakers of colors — lost primaries in recent weeks that centered on the Democratic Party’s split over the Israel-Hamas war.
Unlike other progressives who have sharply criticized Israel, Omar did not face an onslaught of attack ads from outside groups. United Democracy Project, a super PAC tied to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the pro-Israel lobbying group, did not engage in Omar’s race after having spent millions to defeat Bush and Bowman.
Omar did step up her campaign after she nearly lost to Samuels two years ago. As of July 24, her campaign had spent more than $6.1 million on the race, according to the latest campaign finance reports. At the same point in the 2022 primary, her campaign had spent just $71,000. Samuels’