Former Secretary of State and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is backing the primary challenger looking to take down Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman in New York this month.
The race pits Bowman, the progressive incumbent, against George Latimer, a popular county officeholder, in a race in which Bowman’s criticism of Israel in its war with Hamas has taken center stage.
"With Trump on the ballot, we need strong, principled Democrats in Congress more than ever," said Clinton, who cast Latimer in a post on X as someone who "will protect abortion rights, stand up to the NRA, and fight for President Biden’s agenda."
Clinton, a longtime New York resident who represented the state in the U.S. Senate, has a home in a neighboring district.
The primary between Bowman — a Black progressive member of the self-described "squad" of young lawmakers who have won House seats in the last six years — and Latimer, 70, the Westchester County executive, has exposed deep divisions in the Democratic Party and fueled intrigue ahead of this month's election.
Bowman has won the backing of his fellow Democratic "squad" members, including New York House colleague Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York and other members of Democratic leadership, who typically back incumbents.
But Latimer has high-profile allies, too, including a handful of former lawmakers and Democratic former Gov. David Paterson.
And Latimer has also gotten a major lift from the United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a powerful pro-Israel advocacy group, that has spent almost $10 million on advertising in the district, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact. That's the vast majority of the $13 million AdImpact has recorded in the district.
Many of those ads accuse Bowman of being too radical and voting against Biden's priorities or tout Latimer as following through with "progressive results" during his time in government.
The support from UDP and the debate over Bowman's position on Israel's war with Hamas have drawn significant attention to the race. But it's far from the only difference between the two lawmakers.
Bowman has sought to frame himself as a politician of the grassroots, casting Latimer's support from UDP as the work of wealthy outsiders looking to exert their influence on the election. (Bowman has also framed the support as being from Republicans, as the group has received significant contributions from donors who have backed GOP candidates in the past.)
But Latimer's supporters have accused Bowman of antisemitism, and Latimer has framed Bowman as more concerned with chasing "fame" than with delivering for constituents.
Bowman also drew national news attention when he activated a fire alarm while Congress was voting on a GOP government spending bill last year. He has claimed it was an accident, but he pleaded guilty to a count of falsely activating a fire alarm, and the House censured him for his conduct.
