Did Cori Bush’s focus on AIPAC doom her Missouri Democratic primary bid?
JTA — At a speed that surprised local broadcasters and political analysts, the Associated Press determined that former US House representative Cori Bush had lost Missouri’s congressional Democratic primary to incumbent Rep. Wesley Bell just an hour after polls closed. In the end, Bell achieved a landslide victory, racking up 59.2% to Bush’s 36.9%.That’s four times greater than the margin two years ago. In that first face-off, Bell topped Bush — then the district’s representative — by just 5.5 percentage points. The pro-Israel Bell’s overwhelming success Tuesday was especially striking due to negative shifts in public perceptions of AIPAC and the Jewish state, which also made for the biggest policy differences between two candidates with similar platforms.Multiple factors determine the outcomes of political contests, which are always subject to geographic influences, personalities and various other complexities. But pro-Israel advocates who saw the Bell-Bush rematch as a referendum on AIPAC were…
Former US House Representative Cori Bush lost Missouri’s Democratic primary to incumbent Rep. Wesley Bell by a significant margin, 59.2% to 36.9%, just an hour after polls closed. This outcome, four times greater than their previous contest, surprised many, especially given recent shifts in public perception regarding AIPAC and Israel. While Bush centered her campaign on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and AIPAC funding, political analysts suggest that local issues like the economy and cost of living were more decisive for voters in St. Louis.
“The sentiment of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and AIPAC money — while it was a central campaign theme of Cori Bush, it wasn’t the top-of-mind issue for voters in the district,”
said Democratic strategist Braxton Payne. Bell, who is pro-Israel, focused on domestic concerns and received endorsements from the Democratic establishment, including the Congressional Black Caucus. Bush, in her concession, vowed to continue fighting against AIPAC and “the billionaires, the corporations, that think they’re people.”
© All rights to the original article belong to the source. Din Online shows a headline, an excerpt and a link only. The objectivity rating is computed automatically and is an estimate only.
Discussion
No comments yet — be the first to comment.