Bowman falls in House primary, overtaken by flood of pro-Israel money

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., one of Congress’ most outspoken progressives, suffered a stinging primary defeat Tuesday, according to the Associated Press, brought down by a record-shattering onslaught from pro-Israel groups and a slate of self-inflicted blunders.

Bowman was defeated by George Latimer, the Westchester County executive, in a race that became the year’s ugliest intraparty brawl and the most expensive House primary in history.

It began last fall when Bowman stepped forward as one of the leading critics of Israel’s war with Hamas. But the contest grew into a broader proxy fight around the future of the Democratic Party, exposing painful fractures over race, class and ideology in a diverse district that includes parts of Westchester County and the Bronx.

Bowman, the district’s first Black congressman and a committed democratic socialist, never wavered from his calls for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip or left-wing economic priorities. Down in the polls, he repeatedly accused his white opponent of racism and profanely denounced the pro-Israel groups as a “Zionist regime” trying to buy the election.

His positions on the war and economic issues electrified the national progressives, who undertook an eleventh-hour rescue mission led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. But they ultimately did little to win over skeptical voters and only emboldened his adversaries.

A super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobby, dumped $15 million into defeating him, more than any outside group has ever spent on a House race.

Latimer, a moderate with a loyal local following, offered voters a return to more traditional Democratic politics. Centrists and Jewish voters flocked to him. Bowman alienated others by a string of embarrassing gaffes he struggled to explain, most notably the decision to pull a false fire alarm in a House office building last fall.

The result was not close. With 59% of the votes counted, Latimer was winning 55%, compared with 45% for Bowman.

Given the district’s overwhelming Democratic makeup, Latimer is expected to easily win the general election. At 70, he would be among the oldest House freshmen and most likely would provide a reliable vote for party leaders.

The result was an excruciating blow for the left.

The movement once held up Bowman’s upset win in a Democratic primary in 2020, just two years after Ocasio-Cortez’s, as proof of the left’s ascent. Now, with the pendulum swinging back toward the party’s center, he is the first member of the House’s “squad” of young, left-wing lawmakers of color to lose a seat — and may not be the last.

AIPAC and other pro-Israel groups are already targeting Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., in her August primary, and progressives fear that the groups’ show of force in New York will chill criticism of Israel in Congress as the war grinds on.

A former middle school principal representing one of the nation’s most Jewish districts, Bowman was an unlikely partisan in a conflict 5,600 miles away. Four years ago, he actually criticized his opponent, the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, for spending too much time on issues so far from his district.

But after the war’s outbreak, Bowman threw himself into the Palestinian cause, framing it as an extension of his work for children and racial justice at home.

Although he repeatedly condemned Hamas, Bowman was among the first lawmakers to call for a cease-fire, just days after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack; to accuse Israel of committing genocide in Gaza; and to call for the United States to cut off all funding to its ally.

His supporters saw a valiant humanitarian stand and argued that Bowman was speaking for the Black and Latino voters who make up roughly half the district’s population. But at home, many Jewish voters, including some who eagerly helped elect him in 2020, felt betrayed.

Bowman did not visit a synagogue in the weeks after the Oct. 7 attack and has spoken since in terms that some saw as antisemitic, as when he suggested “the Jews” in his district had intentionally chosen to live apart from other people.

Latimer, a more traditional supporter of Israel, entered the race in December at the urging of local rabbis and a Westchester County Democratic establishment that never moved past grudges from 2020.

“After Jamaal Bowman really denied the Jewish experience — and more specifically the Israeli experience — after Oct. 7, I sort of realized: ‘This guy is not willing to see reason, and he’s got to go,’” said Raphael Rosen, a kidney doctor from New Rochelle.

He added: “A lot of strong Israel supporters supported him in 2020, and I’ve heard all of them kind of say that that was a big mistake.”

AIPAC’s involvement further inflamed the race. A bipartisan group dedicated to advancing Israel’s interests in the United States, it has taken an increasingly active role in electoral politics lately to try to stamp out growing skepticism for Israel among Democrats, particularly young progressives.

Bowman presented not only a vulnerable target, but an opportunity to send a message.

The group bundled $2 million in contributions directly to Latimer, while its super PAC, United Democracy Project, spent seven times more than Bowman’s allies combined.