Ilhan Omar Bags DFL Endorsement In Bid For Re-Election
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Rep. Ilhan Omar won the endorsement Saturday of the DFL party in her bid to win re-election in Minnesota's 5th District, according to a campaign statement.
"I share the DFL's belief that democracy starts at the grassroots, and I'm incredibly proud that we again won the party's endorsement through a people-powered process," said the second-term congresswoman, in a statement. "We've broken turnout records in each of our elections. Now we're going to fire up the base and get every single voter in the 5th District out to the polls to make sure we re-elect our Governor and Attorney General and keep Minnesota Blue."
This year, the progressive lawmaker faces a primary challenge from former Minneapolis city councilman and public safety advocate Don Samuels.
Samuels told WCCO that he believes that he can beat the odds that generally favor incumbents with his connections in the community and his leadership style. He was actively against the push to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a Department of Public Safety, which was put to voters last November and failed to pass.
In 2020, Omar faced primary challenger Antone Melton-Meaux, a political newcomer who raised millions. Ultimately, Omar prevailed by 20 points and then won the general election by an even larger margin.
According to Omar's campaign, she is also endorsed by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), progressive members of Congress, such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and many progressive members of the Minneapolis City Council.
The Democratic primary races are set for August in Minnesota. The state's 5th Congressional district is reliably Democratic, covering all of Minneapolis and several surrounding suburbs.
