Illhan Omar thrashes well-funded primary challenger

Minnesota Democrat Illhan Omar fended off a well-funded challenger in yesterday's primary election and is and is now all but certain to retain her seat in November's general. Antone Melton-Meaux vastly outmatched Omar in campaign spending, raising millions more than the incumbent, but conceded by 9 p.m. Tuesday after early results signaled a thrashing.

Omar was the first Somali-American and, with Rashida Tlaib, one of the first two Muslim women to enter Congress.

Omar rejected Melton-Meaux's attacks, saying they were funded by interests who wanted to get her out of Congress because she's effective. She also downplayed Melton-Meaux's prodigious fundraising before the vote, saying, Organized people will always beat organized money."

Democratic U.S. Sen. Tina Smith and Republican challenger Jason Lewis easily won their primaries in the only statewide races on the ballot. Elsewhere, in western Minnesota's conservative 7th District, former state Sen. Michelle Fischbach won a three-way Republican race for the right to challenge Democratic Rep. Collin Peterson. Peterson, chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, is one of the GOP's top targets to flip a House seat in November.

In Minnesota, we know that organized people will always beat organized money.

Tonight, our movement didn't just win. We earned a mandate for change. Despite outside efforts to defeat us, we once again broke turnout records.

Despite the attacks, our support has only grown.

- Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) August 12, 2020