Ilhan Omar Gets Bad News In Primary Race

In the previous 2022 primary, Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) narrowly escaped defeat, securing her position by a margin of only 2,500 votes. The near miss has set the stage for a heated rematch. Omar is now encountering significant opposition in her bid for reelection in Minnesota’s 5th congressional district.

As primary day approaches, Rep. Omar finds herself in a tight race with Don Samuels, a former Minneapolis City Council member and her main Democratic challenger. According to a recent poll by Victoria Research, both Omar and Samuels are currently tied, each capturing 41% of the vote among Democratic voters within the district.

Samuels, leveraging his past experience and political acumen, has been positioning himself as a pragmatic progressive who can collaborate with President Joe Biden. The approach appears to resonate with a segment of the electorate weary of the ongoing divisiveness in Washington, which some attribute to Omar’s confrontational style.

BREAKING: New polling results from Victoria Research, the pollster who predicted our close race in 2022, show us virtually tied with Rep. Ilhan Omar! pic.twitter.com/FoyCtnMmnm

— Don Samuels (@DonSamuelsMN) March 29, 2024

Adding to the competitive atmosphere, Omar’s outspoken criticisms of Israel and her support for Palestine have intensified the public and political debate surrounding her candidacy. These views, particularly in the wake of violent conflicts in the Middle East, have polarized constituents and attracted national attention to this local race. Throughout her career, she has consistently been at the center of controversy.

According to Professor David Schultz, her electoral campaign is among the most notable in the country, primarily because it is a primary election. Her position on the Israel-Hamas conflict has both garnered support and caused estrangement in different groups.

“Ilhan Omar has taken on such a national status for her support of the Palestinians, and criticism of Israel, that I think this is going to be a race that attracts incredible amounts of attention – as it already has – and a lot more national money,” Schultz commented to FOX9.

In March Omar told HuffPost that she was “deeply disappointed” to hear a commentator describe her as a “public relations agent for Hamas” without any opposition.

“We obviously want the hostages released and returned to their families. There are American hostages that are included. There is an infant that is included in those hostages. It is important that we do everything that we can,” Omar said on CNN.

However, she added of Israel, “We can’t be dishonest to the point where we are saying that everybody is doing everything they can to be at the table to negotiate.”

“This blatant Islamophobia and racism are all too common for people who look, and worship like me. When Islamophobia is at an all-time high, the normalization of this hate must be condemned unequivocally,” she wrote to the HuffPost.

On the campaign trail, Samuels has been vocal about the need for new leadership that eschews polarization in favor of unity. “These are divisive times – there’s a lot of rancor out there. I’m campaigning to be the people’s candidate, totally available, accessible, and vulnerable,” Samuels remarked.

As the primary date nears, both candidates are ramping up their efforts to secure voter support in what is anticipated to be one of the most closely watched and contentious races in the nation.