Every ‘Squad’ member won her primary

A 2020 election cycle that began with the defeat of progressives’ preferred presidential candidates is coming to a climax with a string of progressive victories in the House of Representatives.

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), a first-term progressive, soundly defeated her primary challenger, attorney Antone Melton-Meaux, on Tuesday.

Melton-Meaux’s bid was one of the best-funded primary challenges against an incumbent progressive elected official in some time. As of late July, his campaign ― and outside groups supportive of his candidacy ― had spent over $6 million on electing him and unseating Omar. Omar approximately matched him in direct campaign spending, but fell well shy in outside support.

In the end, though, it wasn’t even close. The race was called in Omar’s favor less than 90 minutes after polls closed, handing her an 18-point win with almost 99% of the votes counted.

With Omar’s race over, all four members of the “Squad” of progressive first-term members of the House have won their primaries. Given the overwhelmingly Democratic character of their districts, that means they are all but officially headed back to Washington next year.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York handily dispatched a well-funded challenger in June, and Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan defeated hers earlier this month.

The fourth Squad member, Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, is unopposed in her Sept. 1 primary ― as well as the general election in November.

16 PHOTOSAOCSee GalleryAOCRep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, speaks at a rally for Sen. Bernie Sanders in Queensbridge Park. (Photo by Gordon Donovan/Yahoo News) NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 19: Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) waves with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) as she endorses him during his speech at a campaign rally in Queensbridge Park on October 19, 2019 in the Queens borough of New York City.This is Sanders’ first rally since he paused his campaign for the nomination due to health problems. (Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images)NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 19:Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) endorses Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at a campaign rally in Queensbridge Park on October 19, 2019 in the Queens borough of New York City.This is Sanders’ first rally since he paused his campaign for the nomination due to health problems. (Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images)NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 19:Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) endorses Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at a campaign rally in Queensbridge Park on October 19, 2019 in the Queens borough of New York City.This is Sanders’ first rally since he paused his campaign for the nomination due to health problems. (Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images)AOC says bigger scandal than Trump's 'lawbreaking behavior' is Dems' refusal to impeach

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"This is an immediate threat, it is an immediate, immediate threat, and it is extraordinarily serious," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters on the steps of the U.S. Capitol building on Friday.

She added that in her view there was not more support among Democrats for impeachment proceedings to be leveled against Trump because of challenging elections coming up in their districts.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday that the acting director of national intelligence was breaking the law with his decision to withhold from Congress a whistleblower complaint reported to address communications between President Donald Trump and a foreign leader.

UNITED STATES – SEPTEMBER 20: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., stops to speak with reporters outside of the Capitol after the final votes of the week on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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Often referred to by her initials, AOC, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez made history when she became the youngest woman ever to serve in the United States Congress at 29. Since being elected in 2018, the Puerto Rican Bronx native has continued to make headlines thanks to her Green New Deal and outspoken commentary on social media.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., attends a House Oversight Committee hearing on high prescription drugs prices shortly after her private meeting with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, July 26, 2019. The high-profile freshman and the veteran Pelosi have been critical of one another recently. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

FILE – In this Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019 file photo, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., delivers her inaugural address following her swearing-in ceremony at the Renaissance School for Musical Theater and Technology in the Bronx borough of New York.(AP Photo/Kevin Hagen, File)

U.S. House of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez listens during the NAACP town hall at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundations (CBCF) 49th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC). Moderated by political strategist & CNN political commentator Angela Rye, in conversation with fellow Representatives: Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, and Ilhan Omar, addressing the 2020 census, voting rights, and the upcoming presidential election. The town hall took place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, September 11, 2019.(Photo by Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 29:U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks at a public housing town hall at a New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) residence on August 29, 2019 in the Bronx borough of New York City. Cortez, who represents residents from parts of the Bronx and Queens boroughs, spoke about issues residents face in New York, where one in 14 live in public housing.(Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

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Justice Democrats, the left-wing group that recruited Ocasio-Cortez and remains the main institutional force behind the Squad, celebrated Omar’s election win as a vindication of its project of electing more progressive Democrats.

“Despite all the manufactured hype and money spent attacking them, the Squad is winning, it’s growing, and is here to stay,” Justice Democrats executive director Alexandra Rojas said in a statement.

The Working Families Party, which spent nearly $100,000 on super PACs to reelect Tlaib and Omar, had a similar message.

“Conservative Democrats just took swings at three progressive women of color, and they are zero for three,” the group’s national director Maurice Mitchell said.

The likelihood of unseating an incumbent member of Congress drops precipitously after their first reelection fight. That suggests that for now, the Squad is safe.

The question in the next Congress is whether the four-member crew comes into its own as a subgroup within the Congressional Progressive Caucus capable of leveraging its votes as a bloc, particularly on party-line legislation where Democratic leaders need their votes.

Should they choose to go that route, they will have at least two additional Squadmates on their side. Cori Bush of Missouri and Jamaal Bowman of New York unseated veteran incumbents this year, running on similar ideological platforms.

And back in March, Marie Newman ousted conservative Democratic Rep. Dan Lipinski of Illinois. Newman had the support of both Justice Democrats and mainstream Democratic groups like EMILY’s List.

Still, there are signs that Omar, in particular, must remain vigilant against threats from her right. While her victory margin is wide, she won less than 60% of the vote ― a share of the electorate that is generally a troubling sign for an incumbent. Missouri Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay won just under 57% of the vote in his 2018 primary; Bush returned to unseat him this cycle.

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