The 2024 elections are more than a year away, but that hasn’t stopped Minnesota Democrats from already raising massive amounts of cash, with several United States House candidates already surpassing the $1 million mark.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), one of Minnesota’s most progressive lawmakers, has already raised nearly $1.2 million this year. In 2022, she narrowly defeated her primary challenger Don Samuels, a former Minneapolis councilman, by a single-digit margin. Her win was among the narrowest win for a “Squad” member, the nickname given to six progressive candidates who defeated moderate opponents in 2018 and 2020, and came as a surprise to many since she had won the race in 2018 against rivals who spent millions of dollars to defeat her.
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In the 2024 primary election, Omar will face Minneapolis criminal defense attorney Sarah Gad, who filed for her candidate on July 7 and has not yet raised any money. Gad has unsuccessfully run for office in the past, losing out to Rep. Bobby Rush, (D-IL) in 2020.
Omar’s campaign has already spent $786,000 on digital ads, fundraising, consultants, and other campaign-related costs.
Omar’s colleague, Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN), is considered to be one of the most vulnerable members of Congress. Craig is Minnesota’s first openly LGBT House member, co-chairs the LGBTQ Equality Caucus, and has a whopping $1.5 million in her campaign coffer as of June 30, according to the latest filing with the Federal Election Commission.
Craig represents Minnesota’s Second District, which includes the suburbs of Minneapolis and St. Paul as well as rural areas. She beat Republican challenger Tyler Kistner and independent candidate Paula Overby, to win the seat in one of the most expensive races of the 2022 election cycle. Her seat has once again been targeted by the National Republican Campaign Committee, which believes it can be flipped.
“Every election cycle, Washington politicians and dark money super PACs throw everything they’ve got at defeating me in the Second District, but thanks to grassroots support like this, we’re able to fight back every time,” Craig said in a statement on her campaign website. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve Minnesotans in Congress, and I’ll fight like hell to keep it that way.”
Two Republican challengers have already thrown their hats in the ring to unseat her. Tayler Rahm, a criminal defense lawyer, has raised $51,490, while Michael Murphy, the former mayor of Lexington, has $3,857 in the bank for his campaign.
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Minnesota’s Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN), the House majority whip, has outraised both Omar and Craig. According to the latest filing with the FEC, he’s got $2.4 million in his campaign account. Emmer was the former head of the National Republican Campaign Committee, and has held other like-minded candidates get elected, including Republican firebrand Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), who narrowly won her election 2022 election by just 546 votes to Democrat Adam Frisch.
Republicans won control of the House in 2022 but have only a five-seat majority. In the 2024 contest, 18 Republicans will be defending seats in districts that President Joe Biden won in 2020. Democrats have targeted 31 GOP-held districts across the country to wrestle back control of the House, according to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee “Districts in Play” report, which detailed the party’s 2024 strategy.
