U.S. Representative Cori Bush lost a bitter primary battle driven by Democratic divisions over Israel, further shrinking the “squad” of U.S. House progressives.
An outspoken critic of Israel’s handling of the war in Gaza, the Missouri Democrat was defeated by St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, according to results from the Associated Press. Bell benefited from $9.5 million in ad spending from pro-Israel groups, according to AdImpact.
With 94% of the votes counted, Bell had 51% support compared with about 46% for Bush, AP reported.
Bell implored voters to “stand with Israel,” drawing a sharp contrast with the two-term Democrat who has accused Israel of committing war crimes in its response to the Oct. 7 attack on Israeli civilians by Hamas. The U.S. and European Union deem Hamas a terrorist organization.
Bush’s defeat comes just weeks after Representative Jamaal Bowman, another Israel critic and a fellow squad member, lost his primary to George Latimer, who was backed by the powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
The double losses are a blow to U.S. opponents of Israel’s Gaza invasion and diminish the congressional influence of the squad, a small group that has often clashed with more moderate Democrats.
The St. Louis-area district is a Democratic stronghold and the majority of residents are non-White and nearly half are Black. The district includes Ferguson, where 18-year-old Michael Brown was killed by a White police officer in 2014, sparking protests. Bush has said she was maced and beaten by police during those protests.
Nearly 18% of residents in the district live below the poverty line, about 1.4 times the rate statewide, making economic issues among the area’s top concerns.
Bush, a registered nurse who once was homeless, toppled 10-term incumbent Lacy Clay in the Democratic primary in 2020. In 2022, she won the primary by nearly 43 percentage points. But the influx of outside cash from pro-Israel groups unexpectedly made it a competitive race.
“Because I called for a cease-fire, AIPAC is upset about that,” Bush said in an interview before the primary. “It’s against what they want, and they are willing to put their money behind it.“
Bell did not respond to Bloomberg’s requests for an interview.
Bell raised $4.8 million for his campaign, including backing from Wall Street donors. Among those who gave his campaign the maximum of $3,300 for the primary are Willoughby Capital Management founder Daniel Och, Sessa Capital’s John Petry, and Daniel Loeb of Third Point LLC.
Bush raised $2.9 million. She received contributions from Karla Jurvetson, a major Democratic donor, and Andrew Dudum, co-founder of telemedicine company Hims and Hers Health Inc.
Justice Democrats, a political action committee that supports progressive candidates, spent $2.4 million on Bush’s behalf.
Bush’s public criticisms of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s government and a U.S. Justice Department investigation into allegations she misused government funds gave the pro-Israel groups an opening to replace her with Bell.
“Cori Bush is one of the most bellicose, most vituperative anti-Israel voices in the United States Congress, and we think she doesn’t belong there,” said Mark Mellman, DMFI PAC Chairman, one of the pro-Israel organizations backing Bell.
Divided Democrats
Progressives argued that the massive amounts raised by Israel supporters are intrusive in local races.
“This would not be a race without AIPAC lifting up this man,“ said Usamah Andrabi, the communications director of Justice Democrats, a PAC that supports Bush and other squad members.
The House’s No. 2 Democrat, Katherine Clark, visited Bush’s district and co-hosted a reproductive health round-table with local elected officials and community organizations. Other members who campaigned with Bush include Representatives Ayanna Pressley and Delia Ramirez.
However, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who campaigned for fellow New Yorker Bowman, and other squad members haven’t stumped for Bush in the run up to the primary. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has not provided financial support to either of the candidates.