ADVERTISEMENT

Dem Governor Donates to Ilhan Omar's Primary Opponent

Colorado governor Jared Polis sends $1,000 to Omar challenger

Jared Polis / Getty Images
July 29, 2020

Democratic Colorado governor Jared Polis signaled his opposition to Rep. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.) with a donation to her primary opponent, new filings show.

Polis sent a $1,000 donation on Monday to Antone Melton-Meaux, who is running against Omar in Minnesota's Fifth Congressional District. Melton-Meaux has attracted significant attention after raising $3.2 million last quarter, while the incumbent only took in $471,000.

The donation from Polis, who is Jewish, could signal a rejection of Omar's rhetoric, which has included anti-Semitic tropes and anti-Israel conspiracy theories. The freshman "Squad" member was named anti-Semite of the year in 2019 by StopAntiSemitism.org, an organization that seeks to combat anti-Jewish bias. The group said Omar "perpetuated anti-Semitic tropes on Twitter to nearly two million followers and introduced an anti-Semitic resolution in Congress that promoted boycotts of the State of Israel and likened them to boycotts of Nazi Germany."

Prominent Omar backer Keith Ellison, Minnesota's attorney general, has accused Melton-Meaux of taking millions in "corporate and Republican dollars." But individuals who reside in Omar's district appear to be throwing their support behind Melton-Meaux. The Democratic challenger raised $273,000 from constituents compared with Omar's $8,000 this past quarter. Likewise, individuals across the state of Minnesota provided $323,000 to Melton-Meaux, while Omar took in $11,000.

Melton-Meaux has a significant cash advantage leading up to the August 11 primary. His campaign reported $2 million in cash on hand to Omar's $1 million. Omar has burned through campaign cash at an alarming rate, sending more than $1 million of the campaign's expenditures to her husband's D.C.-based consulting firm.

Polis's office did not respond to a request for comment on his donation.