REP. JAMAAL BOWMANâS Tuesday upset defeat by Westchester County Executive George Latimer generated many perspectives on what exactly precipitated his downfall.
The New York Times published the headline âBowman Falls in House Primary, Overtaken by Flood of Pro-Israel Moneyâ â before swapping it out for âBowman Falls to Latimer in a Loss for Progressive Democrats.â Other coverage emphasized that the American Israel Public Affairs Committeeâs spending wasnât the only factor in the race and that Bowmanâs flaws made him particularly vulnerable, as did changed district lines that made his reelection even tougher.
Progressive strategists, however, had a much more clear takeaway from the results.
âYou donât drop $15 million on an election if your positions are popular,â said Eva Borgwardtâ©, national spokesperson for the Jewish advocacy group IfNotNow, which endorsed Bowman. âThis was an act of desperation from a pro-war lobby that is at odds with the majority of Americans, including American Jews.â
Borgwardtâ© was referring to nearly $15 million spent on the race by AIPAC, the Israel lobbyâs flagship in the U.S. Millions more poured in from AIPAC-aligned groups and donors, bringing the outside spending total to around $25 million.
