Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri on Tuesday became the second member of the progressive “Squad” to lose her seat in the House after a bitter Democratic primary with St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell that drew $15.6 million in outside spending.
Bell had 51 percent of the vote to Bush’s 46 percent at 10:59 p.m. Eastern time when The Associated Press called the race. The results are another setback for the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, following New York Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s loss in June to Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a moderate with deep local ties.
Bush, a nurse and pastor, was active in the racial justice movement in Ferguson, Mo., following the killing of a Black teenager, Michael Brown Jr., by a police officer in 2014. Six years later, she notched an upset win over longtime Democratic Rep. William Lacy Clay.
Bell is a liberal prosecutor who has worked to overhaul the criminal justice system and overturn wrongful convictions.
But the primary in the dark-blue district centered on St. Louis was largely shaped by the split over Israel. Bell received heavy support from pro-Israel groups, while Bush has been one of the most prominent critics of Israel in Congress.
The United Democracy Project, an arm of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, spent nearly $8.6 million on mailers, TV commercials and phone banks attacking Bush or supporting Bell, though the onslaught of negative ads did not mention Israel or the war in Gaza. The political action committee of Democratic Majority for Israel spent another $485,000 supporting Bell, and Fairshake, a PAC funded by the cryptocurrency industry, spent $1.4 million opposing Bush.
Bush had the backing of party leaders, with House Democratic Whip Katherine M. Clark joining her last week to talk about reproductive rights, as well as St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones. She also had support from PACs affiliated with the Congressional Progressive Caucus, the Working Families Party and Justice Democrats, which spent a combined $2.9 million on her behalf.
Bell, who had five times as much money for the campaign’s final weeks as Bush, was endorsed by the district’s largest newspaper, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Bell’s campaign painted Bush as a contentious political figure more interested in gaining media attention than legislating. Bush countered that Bell was an ambitious politician relying on outside money provided by “MAGA megadonors.”
While national observers and PACs viewed the race through the prism of the war in Gaza, the candidates also sparred over other matters. Bell highlighted his support for President Joe Biden’s economic agenda, including the 2021 infrastructure law that Bush was one of six House Democrats to oppose.
Bush had another vulnerability: Her use of campaign funds to pay for private security, including the hiring of her now-husband, sparked a federal investigation. She denied wrongdoing.
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