‘Squad’ Member Ilhan Omar Fends Off Primary Challenge In Minnesota

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., overcame a primary challenge from former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels Tuesday, scoring an important win for the progressive “Squad” members in Congress who have been targeted in the primaries over their criticism of Israel’s war tactics in Gaza.

The Associated Press called the race at 10:39 p.m. EDT and, with nearly all ballots counted, Omar secured 56.2% of the vote compared to Samuels’ 42.9%.

Tuesday’s primary race was a rematch of 2022, when the progressive lawmaker narrowly defeated Samuels by by less than 2,500 votes—compared to her much larger 16,000 vote margin on Tuesday night.

Omar was widely expected to win Tuesday with an internal campaign poll taken in July showing Omar ahead by nearly 30 points and a February poll by Samuels’ campaign showing her leading by nearly 20 points.