Ilhan Omar primary challenge turns ugly as ‘Squad’ Democrat seeks fourth term

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) is accusing her Democratic challenger of actively courting Republican voters as well as big-money groups to boot her from office as the incumbent faces a high-profile primary Tuesday.

Omar, a prominent member of the “Squad,” is facing former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels, who she defeated by just 2 percentage points in 2022. The primary between the two has turned ugly, with both Democrats trading jabs about campaign donations, policy platforms, and most recently, calling into question where support for their campaigns is stemming.

Samuels, who entered the primary after Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack against Israel, has sought to make the House Democrat’s Pro-Palestinian stance a liability for Omar, accusing her of being a “pawn for Hamas.”

Samuels’s attacks against Omar come as two of her left-wing colleagues, Reps. Cori Bush (D-MO) and Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), have been ousted from their seats after pro-Israel groups spent millions of dollars against them.

Those losses have also caused a surge in fundraising against Omar, particularly from pro-Israel groups and those who have proposed courting Republican voters to back Samuels, according to the Intercept.

Omar has denounced those efforts, calling it a “shameful” campaign tactic and accusing Samuels of actively seeking out GOP voters despite running as a Democrat.

“MN05 deserves someone who will champion their values, not seek support from vile MAGA Republicans like Laura Loomer and Royce White,” Omar said in a post on X, referring to Loomer, a conservative political activist, and White, a Republican Senate candidate.

Samuels shot back, accusing Omar of also accepting donations from “Republican and Trump megadonors” and specifically pointing to campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission that showed Farouk Shami, an ally of former President Donald Trump, donating $6,600 to Omar in 2023.

“Don, a lifelong, progressive, pragmatic Democrat, who has raised over 75% of his money from within the district, nearly all of it from Democratic donors. Rep. Ilhan Omar knows that a person’s politics aren’t always so clear-cut,” Samuels said in a statement. “Of course, the last thing Rep. Omar wants this race to be about is her record, so she’s making this last desperate effort to talk about something else.”

Omar has not dealt with such intense pro-Israel fundraising against her as Bush and Bowman did, with groups such as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and its political arm United Democracy only spending roughly $19,000 to boost her opponent. For comparison, AIPAC spent almost $9 million through its political arm to oust Bush and at least $14.5 million on ads attacking Bowman.

The incumbent has also benefitted from support from top left-wing lawmakers such as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who has campaigned alongside the incumbent in recent weeks.

Whoever wins the primary Tuesday will go on to face Republican candidate Dalia al Aqidi, who is running unopposed on the GOP side. The race is expected to heavily favor the Democratic nominee, and the Cook Political Report has given the race a D+30 rating.

As the election is expected to benefit the Democratic candidate, it’s possible Republican voters may weigh in on the Democratic primary through the state’s open primary process, which could result in Samuels clinching more votes from conservatives who wish to see Omar booted from office. 

Both Omar and Samuels have attacked each other in an attempt to paint the other as ineffective and wrong for the district. 

While Samuels has acknowledged the two candidates have similar policy positions, the Democratic challenger has accused Omar of being too divisive in ways that “alienates half of her district.” 

Meanwhile, Omar has pushed back on those arguments, accusing Samuels of adopting many of her policy positions “because he knows those are winning policies,” according to Fox 9. 

“I hope we actually hear what he might want to do instead of just taking my full platform and running with it,” Omar told the outlet. 

Still, Samuels faces an uphill battle as Omar remains popular in her district. The most recent polling from Lake Research Partners shows Omar 27 points ahead. Omar’s campaign has also vastly outspent Samuels, allocating about $2.6 million on advertising compared to his $32,000.

The Washington Examiner contacted Omar’s campaign for comment.