We have some deeply disappointing news, John: the primary election results are in, and incumbent Rep. Cori Bush has lost her seat in Missouri’s 1st Congressional District.

These are not the results we had hoped to share with you after Justice Democrats worked so hard alongside Cori’s team to go up against the barrage of dark money attacks and lies from AIPAC, crypto groups, and more.

Before I talk about the implications of this loss and what comes next, let me first take a moment to celebrate Cori’s bravery in championing Palestinian rights and other marginalized communities despite being targeted by AIPAC. Her courage in sponsoring the ceasefire resolution and calling out injustices both here and abroad is exactly what we need more of in Congress.

We are forever grateful to Cori for taking her lived experience and putting it into action for others, bravely sharing her own abortion story as she fought for reproductive freedom, holding a sit-in on the Capitol steps to demand an extension on the federal eviction moratorium, and advocating for the progressive reform needed to bring justice to families like Michael Brown’s and communities like Ferguson.

While these primary election results in MO-01 are crucial and undoubtedly devastating, remember: we are winning the long-term fight against AIPAC. Justice Democrats’ mission is to build a caucus of morally courageous leaders. This race exemplifies our ongoing battle for a democracy that serves the people, not special interests.

While Cori and Jamaal are major losses for our movement, their races show that what we are doing is working. As we have said previously, AIPAC’s massive spending in primaries like this one is coming from a position of weakness. They have lost the battle of public opinion and have resorted to forcible suppression of their opposition.

For many members of Congress, their money and threats work, and members get in line. However, this is increasingly not the case, in large part due to Justice Democrats’ elected leaders like the Squad, who refused to have their voices suppressed even under the threat of losing their jobs.

This is a loss, but we are winning the long-term fight, and we won’t back down.

With less than one week until our last primary election of the cycle in Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Minnesota district, we cannot despair: we must come together, refocus, and keep up the fight for the progressive leaders and change we deserve.

Please, if you can, consider pitching in $5 to fuel our efforts to help Ilhan defeat her opponent next Tuesday, August 13th. She narrowly won by 2 percent last time around, so we can’t take anything for granted.

Contribute $5

Thank you again for all you’ve done to support Justice Democrats’ work to build a bloc of young, diverse, working-class progressives in Congress and transform the Democratic Party. Our fight continues.

In solidarity,

Alexandra Rojas
Executive Director