Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, will square off for the party’s 2024 congressional nomination against former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels in a rematch of their 2022 race.

Samuels, a prominent progressive, harshly criticized Omar Sunday (Nov. 12) in his first public interview after entering the race.

"Ilhan hasn't helped herself. She has made missteps, even after the last race. There are some folks who are coming (to support me) because of what I am, who I am, and what I will do," Samuel said in an interview with local radio station WCCO.

In 2022, Samuels, 74, lost by just over 2 percentage points to Omar. He told the that this time would be different. Last year, Samuels launched his congressional campaign against Omar just five months before the primary election. 

He has given himself more time for the rematch and expects to raise more money from donors who doubted in 2022 that he could beat Omar.

In addition to more time and money, Samuels said Omar, a three-term incumbent, has made herself vulnerable.

“She's dug a deeper hole, especially in this most recent [Israel-Hamas] crisis, and continues to demonstrate that there's an urgent need for new leadership," Samuels, a Jamaican immigrant, told the Star Tribune.

Omar is a Somali-American and one of only two Muslim-American women elected to Congress. She’s part of a group of progressive House Democrats dubbed “The Squad” who have called for a ceasefire in Gaza after Hamas’ terrorist Oct. 7 attack on Israel. 

In Israel’s counter-offensive, a blast at a Gaza hospital killed scores of civilians. Omar initially accused Israel for the bombing before walking back her comments, according to ABC News.

She also criticized how the Biden administration has handled the conflict.

Omar wrote: “U.S. policy is essentially that [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu has no achievable goals in Gaza and a ground invasion risks regional war, including potential US troops. And also we should give him $14 billion in weapons with no restrictions, and say there are no red lines as he bombs refugee camps. See how this doesn’t add up?”

In a statement to the Star Tribune, Omar defended her congressional records, saying that she has fought for "the progressive values Minnesotans sent me to advocate for."  

She highlighted the effort to codify abortion protections into federal law, advocating for climate change legislation and an assault weapons ban.

Omar questioned Republican mega-donor Harlan Crow's contribution to Samuels’ campaign last year.

"Right-wing donors have targeted me since I first entered public life, so I am not surprised that my challenger previously received contributions from Harlan Crow, the same far-right billionaire who bankrolled [Supreme Court Justice] ," she added.

Samuels, a former Minneapolis School Board member, is no stranger to controversy. He called for the burning down of Minneapolis’ North High School but later clarified that he meant it metaphorically from a place of frustration with the school’s low graduation rates.