Ilhan Omar Faces Challenger Who She Barely Beat in 2022 - But Things Have Changed Drastically Since Then
Former Democratic Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels announced Sunday that he will attempt to unseat Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, according to The Associated Press.
Samuels previously challenged Omar in August 2022, a race in which he was narrowly defeated, garnering 48.2 percent support to Omar’s 50.3 percent.
Samuels called Omar, a member of the ‘Squad,’ divisive and believes a more moderate option is needed, according to AP.
“Our congresswoman has a predilection to divisiveness and conflict,” Samuels told the outlet.
“She has frightened the Jewish community,” Samuels added.
He further pointed to a “latent and lurking antisemitic sentiment that always needs discouragement, and always in times of national crisis raises its ugly head.”
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi offered a late endorsement to Omar in the 2022 race, but the Jamaican-born Samuels also received significant endorsement from local officials in Minneapolis.
“The long tails of the George Floyd and COVID issues continue, with empty storefronts and empty strip malls because people don’t want to invest anymore. They don’t think it’s safe,” Samuels told the AP.
Samuels opposed defunding the police following the death of George Floyd while Omar, on the other hand, called it a “policy demand,” according to the outlet.
Other declared candidates include Democrats Sarah Gad, an attorney, Tim Peterson, a military veteran, and one Republican, Dalia Al-Aqidi, an Iraqi-American journalist, according to the AP.
Samuels and Omar did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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