Following a close contest in 2022, U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar will square off against Don Samuels once more in the 5th District.
Tuesday’s primary pits U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar against Don Samuels, a former Minneapolis City Councilmember whom she barely defeated two years prior.
Since 2019, Omar has served as the Fifth Congressional District’s representative. One of the most Democratic districts in the nation is made up of her constituents in Minneapolis and the inner ring suburbs; the winner of the primary election has typically defeated the Republican nominee and gone on to Congress.
It was a close decision the last time the two faced off on the primary ballot. In 2022, Omar secured 50% of the vote, whereas Samuels secured 48%. In the general election, Omar comfortably defeated Cicely Davis, the Republican opponent.
The voters here in this district know who Don Samuels is,” Samuels said, sounding “very, very excited” about his chances in this rematch with CBS News congressional correspondent Nikole Killion.
Unlike Omar, who supported a reorganization of the Minneapolis police following the death of George Floyd, Samuels focused most of his 2022 campaign on the topic of crime. She has since tempered her stance.
He was one of the eight residents of north Minneapolis who sued the city over its understaffed police department. The Minnesota Supreme Court declared in June 2022 that Minneapolis was had to hire a minimum of 731 policemen.
Samuels thought after the loss that the mere 2,500 vote difference “sends a message to the incumbent that her work needs serious help.” She will lose her seat if she doesn’t pay attention to the electorate.”
Then, in an interview released in November of last year, Samuels claimed that Omar was “not cute enough” and “didn’t dress well enough” to get away with supposedly ignoring her constituents. Omar called Samuels’s remarks “beneath the dignity of any adult” and accused him of sexism, even though Samuels denied saying them.
Omar is well-positioned financially for the primary. According to federal papers, by the end of June, she had raised about $5 million and had over $2.5 million left over for the campaign. Samuels had raised $750,000 and was in possession of $230,000 in cash.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, who traveled to Minnesota in early August to campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris and promote progressive candidates, also provided assistance to her.
Nonetheless, Samuels claims that there is a fresh enthusiasm for his campaign this time around; in just two years, his volunteer base has increased thirteen times.
Omar has been under fire for her views on Israel since 2022. She has called for a truce and denounced the Hamas attack when it occurred, but she has also come under fire for some of her remarks, most notably a recent one in which she implied that some pro-Israeli protestors supported genocide.
Republicans removed her from the Foreign Affairs Committee after she claimed members who backed Israel were driven by financial gain in comments she made shortly after being elected. She was removed by the Republican-led House in what was perceived as retaliation against Democrats who had removed far-right GOP members Paul Gosar and Marjorie Taylor Greene for remarks they had made and for allegedly encouraging violence against their Democratic colleagues.
Omar assured her that her voice would only get louder and more powerful and that she would not be hushed.
In the most recent test for “Squad” members, Rep. Ilhan Omar is predicted to win the Democratic primary in Minnesota.
The Associated Press predicted Tuesday night that Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota had won her Democratic primary, easily defeating opponent Don Samuels. She is the most recent “Squad” member to be put up for a primary after prominent losses to Reps.
Omar was challenged by former Minneapolis City Council member Samuels for the second time in two years. In 2022, Omar defeated Samuels by a small margin of about 2,500 votes. But the outcomes were not quite as close this time. By a ratio of 56% to 42%, Ilhan was ahead of Samuels with over 99% of precincts reporting.
Before the race, Samuels told CBS News, “I’m feeling very, very excited.” The last time, it was challenging. People were inquiring as to why you were doing this. You are unable to prevail. As a result, there was a great deal of hedging of efforts and bets, along with some resistance that needed to be overcome. People are realizing this time that we could have won if they had contributed.”
