U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., a far-left member of the congressional House “Squad,” has lost her reelection campaign, the Associated Press reported.
With 95 percent of the ballots cast, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell led Bush by nearly six points (51.2 percent to 45.6 percent), marking the second time a Democrat incumbent has lost their party’s primary this cycle.
Bush, who has represented Missouri’s First Congressional District since 2021, has recently faced harsh criticism over her anti-Israel positions amid their war against Hamas. Earlier this year, the progressive congresswoman voted against giving financial aid to Israel, and suggested that the state was committing genocide.
Bell received $8.5 million from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) records, to oust Bush, making the race one of the most expensive primaries in recent history.
Despite her anti-Israel positions possibly contributing towards her loss, Bush reiterated during her concession speech on Tuesday how she would “keep supporting a free Palestine,” the Associated Press reported.
Bush previously sparked more outrage among members from both parties after calling Israel’s retaliation against Hamas an “ethnic cleansing campaign” in a post to X just weeks after the Oct. 7 attack, which saw about 1,200 people killed by Hamas terrorists, according to the BBC.
Wesley Bell, who had previously planned to run for U.S. Senate against incumbent Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., instead had began a primary run against Bush, telling the AP that her comments about Israel were “wrong and offensive.”
Ultimately, these positions came back to haunt Bush, who is now the second “Squad” member to lose their primary after making anti-Israel statements.
U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., became the first incumbent Democrat to lose a primary earlier in June.
