The "Squad" left faces complete wipeout in Illinois Democratic primaries

"AIPAC pivoted in the final week of the campaign to focusing its fire on the more pro-Palestinian Abughazaleh than Biss, who was backed by the Congressional Progressive Caucus and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Another AIPAC affiliate, Chicago Progressive Partnership, ran ads painting Abughazaleh as a closet Republican and boosting a lower tier leftist in the race, Bushra Amiwala."

"In Illinois' 2nd district, progressive state Sen. Robert Peters came in a distant third behind AIPAC-backed Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller and former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. And in the 7th district, CPC-backed labor leader Anthony Driver Jr. and progressive organizer Kina Collins finished third and fourth."

"AIPAC said in a post on X, boasting that Illinois voters "rejected ... far-left, would-be Squad members who centered their campaigns on attacking Israel." On the 9th district, they said in another post: "While disappointed Laura Fine didn't prevail, the pro-Israel community is proud to have helped defeat would-be Squad members.""

In Illinois' 2024 congressional primaries, AIPAC and affiliated groups significantly influenced outcomes across multiple districts. In the 9th district, left-wing journalist Kat Abughazaleh, backed by Justice Democrats and Sunrise Movement, lost to Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss. AIPAC initially opposed both candidates but pivoted to targeting Abughazaleh's pro-Palestinian stance while boosting other candidates. Similar patterns emerged in the 8th district where progressive Junaid Ahmed lost to moderate Melissa Bean, despite Ahmed's support from the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. In the 2nd and 7th districts, progressive candidates also underperformed against AIPAC-backed or moderate opponents. AIPAC publicly celebrated these results, framing them as voter rejection of far-left candidates focused on Israel criticism.

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