Ilhan Omar wins re-election in Minnesota weeks after federal agents raided her home
With 99 percent counted, Omar had 76.5 percent of the vote in Minnesota's 5th District, and she denies wrongdoing in the federal immigration investigation.
Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar won a fifth term in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District on Tuesday. With 99 percent of the votes counted, she had 76.5 percent against 16.2 percent for Republican John Nagel, a retired state trooper. The Associated Press called the race for her.
The win came less than a month after Investigations agents raided her Washington, D.C., home on Oct. 12. A spokesperson said the search was authorized by a judge and is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation. The New York Times, citing people familiar with the warrant, reported that it lists several potential immigration offenses.
Omar has denied wrongdoing. Fox News reports she has not been charged. She calls the raid an attempt to target political enemies, and her attorney calls the investigation politically motivated.
President Trump said he understands authorities are looking at her very carefully. Fox News reports a second federal probe, into her financial disclosures. The Daily Mail reports renewed attention to allegations that she married Ahmed Nur Said Elmi in 2009, whom it calls her alleged brother.
She denies this. Democrats also flipped both and the in the same election.
- 76.5 percent Omar's share of the vote with 99 percent counted — Newsweek
- 16.2 percent Republican John Nagel's share of the vote — Newsweek
- 263,166 votes for Omar as of Wednesday morning — Newsweek
- 344,118 total votes cast in the district — Newsweek
Three sides of the story
Liberal0 outlets
Outlets on this side gave the story little coverage.
Center1 outlet
Omar's biggest win since 2018 after the raid
Newsweek leads with the margin, calling it Omar's biggest electoral win since 2018, and gives the count of 263,166 votes for her against 55,805 for Nagel. It sets that against 2024, when she won 74.4 percent, and her 78 percent in 2018. Newsweek says the result "will be seen as a strong public endorsement" after the raid.
It quotes her X post: "We will not allow Trump to silence us." Newsweek describes the allegations about immigration paperwork as unproven. It gives a Justice Department spokesperson's statement that the raid is part of an ongoing investigation, and the New York Times report on the warrant, which Newsweek has not reviewed.
Omar's reply, that the raid is an attempt to target political enemies, appears next to her attorney's words, "politically motivated," and Trump's remark that she is "totally crooked personally." The piece also recalls Homeland Security Secretary Mark Mullin's September comments and notes the Democratic wave that flipped the Senate and House.
Conservative2 outlets
Omar's win despite the immigration probe and scrutiny
Fox News calls her "scandal-plagued" and says she "cruised" to a fifth term despite an ongoing federal criminal probe over her immigration status and another over her financial disclosures. It details the Oct. 12 raid: agents took her phone, passport and computer and obtained her DNA. Fox cites court filings naming her "Ilhan Omar Nur Said Elmi," and an Obama-era inquiry opened in 2016 and closed in 2021, according to a source.
It notes she has not been charged and quotes her spokesperson calling the claims a "desperate political smear." The Daily Mail leads with the victory party, where Omar "danced on stage" and thanked voters in Somali. It reports the Justice Department is investigating allegations of a "sham" marriage to Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, which she has repeatedly denied.
It adds a Daily Caller report on an essay by Elmi, and says the seat's strong Democratic lean made the win widely anticipated.
Which side made the stronger case?
All sources: 3 articles from 3 outlets
Center (1)
Conservative (2)
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