Jamaal Bowman, the antisemitic Squad member who infamously pulled a fire alarm in an attempt to delay a House vote last year, has lost his primary battle to Westchester County Executive George Latimer, DecisionDeskHQ projects.
Decision Desk HQ projects George Latimer wins the Democratic primary for US House in New York's 16th Congressional District.#DecisionMade: 9:21pm ET
— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) June 26, 2024
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Despite having left-wing heroes like Sen. Bernie Sanders (S-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D.N.Y.) campaigning for him, Bowman, 48, has become the first Democratic incumbent to lose in this year's primaries. He's also the first member of the so-called Squad to be ousted from power since the group became a thing after the 2018 elections. Unfortunately, other Squad members, like Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, who faced primary challenges, managed to survive their elections.
NBC News has more.
A former Bronx middle school principal, Bowman stormed Washington after unseating 16-term Rep. Eliot Engel, then the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and one of the most powerful Jewish lawmakers in Congress, in 2020.
Latimer, 70, has been involved in local and state politics for more than 35 years. He first won election in New York to the Rye City Council in 1987, and would go on to win seats in the Westchester County Board of Legislators, and New York state Assembly and Senate.
As the Democratic nominee, Latimer will almost certainly be the next congressman from New York’s 16th district, a diverse area north of Manhattan that includes parts of the Bronx and south Westchester County. Joe Biden won the deep-blue district over Donald Trump by nearly 45 percentage points in 2020, according to the Daily Kos Elections.
Last year, Bowman was caught on video setting off a fire alarm in the Cannon House Office Building in an attempt to delay a House vote on the stopgap resolution to avert a shutdown. Despite his claim that it was an accident, Bowman pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges related to the incident. Technically, he violated federal law by obstructing an official proceeding, but he received only a slap on the wrist. The House Ethics Committee absurdly chose not to investigate the incident.
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However, Bowman’s anti-Israel views ultimately ended his political career. Polls showed that Israel-Hamas was a major issue affecting the race. Latimer, Bowman’s opponent, strongly supports Israel, while Bowman reacted to the Hamas attack by calling Israel an "apartheid” state, though he later retracted it. Earlier this month, a survey showed 45% of voters in the district supported Latimer's stance on the conflict, while 29% sided with Bowman.
The district is solidly Democrat-leaning, so Latimer will likely be the next U.S. representative in NY-16. He has often been described as a moderate Democrat, but who knows what that means anymore. That said, Jamaal Bowman won't be missed.
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