Rep. Ilhan Omar Defeats Her Primary Opponent; UPDATE: Omar Trashes 'Organized Money'

Beth Baumann | August 11, 2020 9:55 PM

UPDATE

Omar took to Twitter to make a statement about her victory:

In Minnesota, we know that organized people will always beat organized money.

Tonight, our movement didn’t just win. We earned a mandate for change. Despite outside efforts to defeat us, we once again broke turnout records.

Despite the attacks, our support has only grown.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 12, 2020

This election isn’t about me. It’s about an agenda rooted in people’s everyday struggles—and the corporations and rightwing donors who are threatened by it.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 12, 2020

It’s about standing up to a President who promised to ban an entire group of people from this country based solely on their Muslim identity, calls our countries of origin ‘shithole countries,’ and threatened to send us back to where we came from.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 12, 2020

It has been the honor of my life to represent you in Congress and I look forward to continuing to serve the people of the 5th District in the years to come.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 12, 2020

ORIGINAL POST

Freshman Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D) on Tuesday won her primary against progressive challenger Antone Melton-Meaux.

According to Decision Desk, Omar received 82,955 votes, which equates to 56.85 percent of the vote. Melton-Meaux received 58,1163 votes, which equates to 39.87 percent. Three other candidates were on the ballot but none of them received more than two percent of the vote.

First-term progressive Rep. @IlhanMN, a member of the Squad, has defeated primary challenger @Antone_MN in Minnesota’s 5th congressional district, @DecisionDeskHQ projects. Omar faced the most competitive primary challenge of all the Squad members in 2020 https://t.co/EOoR7jn3R9 pic.twitter.com/pihdmWEE6a
— Grace Panetta (@grace_panetta) August 12, 2020

“Bankrolled by pro-Israel donors, Antone Melton-Meaux has spent more than twice as much as Omar the on television ads, and outside groups have kicked in to increase his advantage.”https://t.co/aljaPxp81i

Money wasted as @IlhanMN easily rolls to victory: https://t.co/uQvLW5kPrJ
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) August 12, 2020

Melton-Meaux was banking on Omar's national name recognition and spotlight as a means of ousting her from office. According to the challenge, Omar isn't focused on doing the work for the people in her district.

"The residents feel deeply that Congresswoman Omar is out of touch with the district and has been focused on her own personal pursuits and celebrity to the detriment of the work that needs to be done for the 5th," Melton-Meaux told NPR before the primary.

Both Omar and Melton-Meaux raised significant amounts of cash.