New York Rep Jamaal Bowman Suffers Devastating Double-Digit Loss To Challenger George Latimer
Wednesday, June 26, 2024, 6:00 A.M. ET. By Jennifer Hodges: Englebrook Independent News,
WESTCHESTER, NY.- U.S. House Rep. Jamaal Bowman, (D-NY.), has become the first member of the far-left progressive group of U.S. House lawmakers as known as The Squad to lose a primary challenge in the 2024 election cycle on Tuesday, after suffering a devastating defeat to a moderate Democrat candidate in New York’s Bronx District.
Westchester County Executive George Latimer dealt a blow to the squad by defeating Bowman in a high-profile primary that largely hinged on the two Democrats’ opposing views on the Israel-Hamas war.
Bowman, a second-term House Representative, and former public middle school principal, has been an outspoken critic of Israel’s war effort, and the Biden Administration continued military support to Israel. Bowman has accused Israel of committing genocide and even went as far as suggesting that Latimer supports genocide, in his unhinged appearance at a get-out-the-vote on Saturday in the South Bronx.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel group that supports both Republican and Democratic candidates, spent millions to unseat Bowman in the primary, including giving close to $2 million in campaign donations to Latimer’s campaign.
During the primary race, Latimer and other outspoken Bowman critics have chastised the progressive Democrat for a series of controversial statements and incidents, that included an incident last year on Capitol Hill when Bowman pulled a fire alarm in a House Office Building prompting an emergency evacuation.
Following the alarm-pulling fiasco, Bowman first denied pulling the alarm, then admitted to doing so and said he did so because he “did not want to miss the votes to keep the government.” Boman later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge and served three months of probation and paid a $1,000 fine.
Tuesday’s loss may call into play the future of the squad. In April, fellow squad member, Rep. Summer Lee, (D-PA) won by a narrow margin over her challenger in her Pittsburgh-area district from a moderate Democrat who criticized Lee’s opposition to providing U.S. Military Aid for Israel.
AIPAC contributed to efforts to unseat Lee, during the 2022 midterm elections, but stayed out of this year’s race. Lee, unlike Bowman received backing from prominent Democrats like Sen. John Fetterman, (D-PA.), one of the most outspoken Democrats in support of Israel, and President Biden.
There is still one other member of the squad who faces a difficult primary race in August.
Second-term progressive Rep. Cori Bush, (D-MO.), will face St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell in the August 6, 2024, primary. Bell has received more than $630,000 in campaign donations from AIPAC which could play a major role for Bell to successfully unseat Bush. Some polling has shown that Bell is leading by 20 points over Bush in the upcoming Missouri primary election.
Bowman’s Tuesday loss to Latimer may be starting to set a trend that many constituents are beginning to take a second look at squad members, and are finally moving away from the squad’s radical views and their anti-Israel rhetoric.
