Progressives Get Bittersweet Results in Illinois Dem Primaries

In the Illinois Democrat House primaries on Tuesday, the party’s left wing got mixed results, while candidates less hostile to the Israeli government managed to triumph in multiple races.

On Tuesday, Illinois Democrat voters selected their nominees in four U.S. House races. 

Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss won the nomination in the 9th district, Melissa Bean in the 8th, state Rep. La Shawn Ford in the 7th, and Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller in the 2nd.

The Congressional Black Caucus, Justice Democrats, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., all backed candidates in the House primaries, none of whom won.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., made three House primary endorsements, only one of whom, Biss, won.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), as well as aligned groups that spent money in support of pro-Israel candidates, emerged as overall winners.

Both Bean and Miller, who are pro-Israel candidates, won their primaries in solidly progressive districts.

“These results further demonstrate that campaigns defined largely by opposition to AIPAC, our members, and the values we represent continue to fall short on election night,” AIPAC said in a statement.

However, pro-Israel groups did not win across the board.

Biss, who emerged victorious on Tuesday, called out AIPAC and aligned groups by name throughout his campaign, saying in a recent social media post, “we’re going to beat them and their right-wing money.”

In his post-victory speech, Biss said, “AIPAC found out the hard way… Enough about AIPAC. May tonight be the last night I utter their name.”

State Sen. Laura Fine, AIPAC’s preferred candidate, placed third in the race.

“While disappointed that Laura Fine did not prevail, voters rejected two anti-Israel candidates in this race—Kat Abughazaleh and Bushra Amiwala,” AIPAC said in a statement on X.

The United Democracy Project, an AIPAC-connected political action committee, also ran ads in support of Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears Ervin in the 7th congressional district, who lost to Ford. 

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