Updated August 06, 2024 at 23:11 PM ET
ST. LOUIS 鈥� Missouri U.S. Rep. Cori Bush has lost the Democratic primary for the state鈥檚 1st Congressional District seat, according to a race call from The Associated Press.
Bush was ousted by St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell, who was backed by pro-Israel groups.
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She now becomes the second member of progressive House Democrats known as 鈥渢he Squad鈥� defeated in a primary that was linked to the incumbent鈥檚 views of Israel. In June, New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman .
Bush, a St. Louis-based congresswoman, became a national figure after . Before being elected, she participated in the protest movement in Ferguson that .
In 2021, she slept on the Capitol steps to protest an expiring eviction moratorium. She is also an supporter and worked to repeal a federal law that Democrats fear .
This year, her long-standing criticism of Israel and advocacy for Palestinians helped fuel Bell鈥檚 campaign. Bush angered some Jewish leaders after Hamas鈥� deadly Oct. 7 attack for her criticism of Israel鈥檚 military actions in Gaza, including saying in a tweet that she couldn鈥檛 鈥�.鈥� Israeli officials say the high civilian death toll in Gaza is the consequence of Hamas hiding among noncombatants while waging war.
As she tried to prevail in of the year, Bush was unapologetic about her speaking in support of Palestinians and criticizing the Israeli government. She said between Black Americans fighting for their civil rights and Palestinians seeking self-determination.
鈥淚 condemned Hamas over and over again. But what I did not do was sign onto legislation that were Republican bills meant to fuel anti-Palestinian hate,鈥� Bush said . 鈥淲hat we were saying was, we can condemn Hamas. And also care about the lives of the Palestinian people and not want to see them harmed as well.鈥�
Ads fueled by AIPAC don鈥檛 mention Israel
Bush alleges pro-Israel groups like the United Democracy Project engaged in a deceptive campaign. She said the ads don鈥檛 mention Israel 鈥� but primarily her votes that stray from President Biden鈥檚 agenda.
She said that鈥檚 by design: Missouri鈥檚 1st Congressional District contains an African-American plurality. Neither Bush nor Bell believe Black voters rank as a top priority when deciding on how to vote. And Bush noted that prominent Democrats, including Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, are in favor of a cease-fire in Gaza.
鈥淪o the thing is this, why are they not talking about that? Is it because this is the president's position to have a cease-fire now?鈥� Bush said. 鈥淎nd so I'm really pissed off that there is this deceit happening, because if you believe that's why you needed to run, then why aren't you running on that?鈥�
Marty Murray is a Bush supporter who knocked on doors around parts of her St. Louis-based district. He said he hadn鈥檛 heard a single Black voter tell him they weren鈥檛 voting for Bush because of her advocacy for Palestinians or her criticism of Israel.
鈥淏ecause I think the sentiment is, why are we spending all that money abroad, when we have people in our district that are struggling every day?鈥� Murray said. 鈥淭hat's the general consensus.鈥�
A spokesperson for the United Democracy Project did not return a request for comment.
For his part, Bell said last year that Bush鈥檚 comments about Israel were part of the reason he and is instead running in the St. Louis County-based district.
鈥淲e don't want to see any innocent Israelis or any innocent Palestinians harmed,鈥� Bell . 鈥淏ut I think we have to understand that we do have an obligation to stand with our fellow democracies to be reliable partners to our reliable partners and stand against terrorism.鈥�
Bell, who received support from numerous throughout the St. Louis area, said that groups like the United Democracy Project were getting involved in the race because 鈥渋t鈥檚 important to a lot of people.
鈥淭here are folks in this district who are not showing up to the polls with what's going on in the Middle East as their main reason for voting,鈥� Bell said. 鈥淎nd that's true, but that doesn't mean it's not important. And so what I've been laser focused on is showing up to events and showing up to constituents and hearing their concerns. Because we鈥檝e got to be able to do two things, three things, four things at once.鈥�
Bush鈥檚 votes come into focus
Bell argued he has other concerns with Bush鈥檚 record in Congress. In particular, Bell points out the times Bush diverged from Biden鈥檚 domestic agenda, including her votes against a 2021 infrastructure bill and a 2023 deal to resolve a standoff over raising the debt ceiling.
鈥淲hen we talk about the issues that matter and understand how that's done, that means you got to get folks to work together. That's what I have a track record of doing,鈥� Bell said. 鈥淚 think that's a clear distinction between myself and the congresswoman.鈥�
Kyle Kondik is with Larry Sabato鈥檚 Crystal Ball, a University of Virginia-based organization that tracks House and Senate races. He said it鈥檚 not unusual for groups like AIPAC to form political action committees because they oppose a candidate for a specific issue 鈥� and then run ads on unrelated concerns with a candidate.
to New York Congressman Bowman, who lost a primary challenge after groups like the United Democracy Project poured millions of dollars to help support eventual winner George Latimer.
鈥淚t's practical politics to try to figure out attack lines against a candidate that you think are going to be most effective,鈥� Kondik said. 鈥淎nd they may not have anything to do with the actual issue that that group may exist for."
Bush said that she voted against the infrastructure bill because , which contained expansions to education, child care and health care programs. She鈥檚 also pointed to instances where she鈥檚 been able to work with Biden鈥檚 administration, notably on legislation mapping out where to send environmental funds.
But some 1st District voters who supported Bush in 2020 and 2022 have soured on her because of how she鈥檚 voted over the past couple of years. Anne Taussig, who voted for Bush twice, but is now supporting Bell, pointed to how she didn鈥檛 support funding for Israel鈥檚 Iron Dome and the federal infrastructure bill.
鈥淗er position seems kind of extreme in her votes, instead of aligning herself with Biden, who is arguably the best progressive president I've had in my lifetime,鈥� Taussig said.
Others said that the expensive ad blitz soured them on Bell鈥檚 campaign.
鈥淪he has voted consistently for St. Louis. And she's delivered on those promises,鈥� said St. Louis resident Cynthia Marich. 鈥淎nd I think that I don't trust a politician who cannot stand up for where your money comes from.鈥�
Shadow of Ferguson looms over race
Bush and her allies have questioned Bell鈥檚 Democratic credentials, pointing out that in 2006. (Bell鈥檚 campaign told the Huffington Post he was helping out a friend.) And some of her House colleagues have come to St. Louis to campaign for her, including Democratic House leaders like Minority Whip Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and members of 鈥渢he Squad鈥� like Illinois Congresswoman Delia Ramirez.
鈥淪he knows that when she looks at herself in the mirror, when she thinks about who she represents, she can stand proud with her chin up and say: 鈥業 am doing right by St. Louis. I am doing right by my family. I'm doing right by my community,鈥� 鈥� Ramirez said during a recent campaign stop in north St. Louis County.
Bell received backing from prominent trade unions, as well as some elected officials like Ferguson Mayor Ella Jones. Bell and Jones in the wake of Brown鈥檚 shooting death, and took part in contentious discussions that ultimately for the town鈥檚 government and police department that鈥檚 still in place today.
Jones was confident Bell could win over Black voters 鈥� since he鈥檚 been such a fixture in St. Louis County鈥檚 local and county political scene. In 2018, Bell St. Louis County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch, who stoked controversy after he declined to charge former Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson for shooting and killing Brown.
鈥淚 believe that he can swing those votes just because of being visible,鈥� she said.
But Bush evoked Brown鈥檚 death to level perhaps the most cutting blow against Bell during the contentious campaign.
She released featuring Michael Brown Sr., who contended that Bell let his family down when he decided after he became prosecutor in 2020.
鈥淗e never walked the streets of Ferguson with me. He failed to reform the office. He used my family for power,鈥� Brown Sr. said in the ad. 鈥淣ow, he鈥檚 trying to sell out St. Louis. He doesn鈥檛 care about us.鈥�
Bell said in 2023 while he was still running for the U.S. Senate that while it was a difficult decision not to charge, the evidence wasn鈥檛 there to pursue the case.
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