Rep. USA Ilhan Omar, member of ‘The Team’, wins Dem. primary

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, one of the progressive members of the House known as “The Team” and a sharp critic of Israel’s handling of the Gaza war, has won her primary race in Minnesota.

Omar successfully defended his Minneapolis-area 5th District seat against a repeated challenge from former Minneapolis City Councilman Don Samuels, a more centrist liberal whom he narrowly defeated in the 2022 primary.

Omar avoided the fate of two teammates. Rep. Cori Bush lost the Democratic nomination in her Missouri district last week, and Rep. Jamaal Bowman of New York lost the primary in June. Both faced well-funded opponents and millions of dollars in spending from the United Democracy Project, a super political action committee affiliated with the American Public Affairs Committee in Israel, which appeared to be out of the Minnesota race.

Samuels had criticized Omar’s condemnation of the Israeli government’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war. While Omar also criticized Hamas for attacking Israel and taking hostages, Samuels said it was one-sided and divisive. He also highlighted public safety issues in Minneapolis, where a former police officer killed George Floyd in 2020.

Samuels said he was “very disappointed” in his loss.

“Clearly, money matters a little more in politics than we had hoped,” he said in an interview

Omar will face Republican Dalia Al-Aqidi, an Iraqi-American journalist and self-described secular Muslim, who calls Omar pro-Hamas.

Meanwhile, conservative populist and former NBA player Royce White defeated Marine veteran Joe Fraser in the Minnesota primary for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar in November.

And former U.S. Attorney Joe Teirab, backed by former President Donald Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson and the National Republican Congressional Committee, won a contested GOP primary for Minnesota’s 2nd District seat, held by Democratic Rep. Angie Craig.

His opponent, defense attorney Tayler Rahm, won the endorsement at the district convention with the support of grassroots conservatives.

While Rahm announced in July that he was suspending his campaign and would instead serve as a senior adviser to Trump’s Minnesota campaign, he remained on the ballot.

Teirab will face Craig in what is expected to be Minnesota’s most competitive House race in November.

Craig issued a statement following Teirab’s win, calling him “a guy who recently moved into the district because he saw a political opportunity.”

“He’s a guy who spent months doing whatever it took to win the support of Republicans in Washington,” Craig said. “And he’s a guy who has made it his life’s mission to take reproductive freedoms away from families and give those decisions to politicians.”

In the US Senate race, White — an ally of former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones — shocked many political observers when he defeated Fraser at the party convention for the GOP endorsement.

White’s comments on social media have been denounced as misogynistic, homophobic, anti-Semitic and profane. His legal and financial issues include unpaid child support and questionable campaign expenses, including $1,200 spent at a strip club in Florida, after he lost his primary challenge to Omar in 2022. He claims that as a man of color, can broaden the party’s base by appealing. black voters in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and others were disappointed with the policy of the institution.

Fraser said White’s confrontational style and message won’t attract the moderates and independents needed for a competitive challenge against Klobuchar, who is seeking a fourth term. He said he offers a more general approach, emphasizing fiscal conservatism, a strong defense, world leadership and small government. Fraser also highlighted his 26 years in the Navy, where he was an intelligence officer and served a combat tour in Iraq.

Neither has anywhere near the resources that Klobuchar has. White last reported raising $133,000, while Fraser took in $68,000. Meanwhile, Klobuchar has raised about $19 million this cycle and has more than $6 million available to spend on the campaign trail. She faced only nominal primary opposition.

Another clash between establishment and grassroots Republicans took place in western Minnesota’s 7th District. Trump-backed GOP Representative Michelle Fischbach, considered one of the most conservative members of Congress, defeated small businessman Steve Boyd. Boyd ran to her right on a religious platform and prevented her from gaining endorsement at the district convention. Boyd said he spent $170,000, while Fischbach spent more than $1 million.