Progressive Representative. Summer Lee fended off a primary challenge from Edgewood Borough Council member Bhavini Patel, NBC News projects, in a race that served as an initial test of how Democratic voters feel about the war between Israel and Hamas and concerns about rising domestic anti-Semitism.
With 99% of the expected votes counted, Lee had a 21-point lead over Patel.
In a victory speech in Pittsburgh, Lee said, “This movement is stronger than anything they want to throw at us” and is “stronger than any Republican billionaire.” She called for peace “from Pittsburgh to Palestine.”
“Our movement is broad and big enough for each of us,” she said in an appeal to those who opposed her during the primaries. “We will not be ashamed or hang our heads when we say we do not want any more wars, when we say that people deserve dignity, human rights and self-determination, whether they are Jewish, Muslim, black or white, or whether they are in Gaza, Pakistan or the Haiti.”
Following his defeat, Patel said in a statement that although the result was disappointing, the “race was far from a defeat”.
“This race was about so much more than me or my opponent,” she said. “It was about passing common-sense laws that put money in the pockets of working families. It was about confronting hate and ending anti-Semitism. And the goal was to ensure that President Biden was re-elected in November.”
Lee, a member of the “Squad” in the House, has been critical of Israel’s handling of the war and was one of the first lawmakers to call for a ceasefire in Gaza last year. Patel described Lee’s defense as damaging to Biden’s re-election chances and out of step with his district.
The Pittsburgh-area’s 12th District is also home to Squirrel Hill, one of the country’s most prominent historically Jewish neighborhoods and the site of the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue massacre, the worst anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history.
Lee, who condemned Hamas and spoke out against anti-Semitism, accused the Israeli government of committing “war crimes” and called for an end to unconditional military aid to the country. On Saturday, she joined 36 Democrats and 21 Republicans in voting against an aid package for Israel, which was overwhelmingly approved. Jewish leaders in Pittsburgh expressed discomfort with how she handled and discussed issues concerning Israel.
But Lee was seen as a prohibitive favorite before Tuesday. The first Black woman elected to Congress from Pennsylvania, Lee overcame significant spending by pro-Israel groups during her first primary bid in 2022 before winning the general election. This time, those same groups did not get involved in her race, even as Israel became a much more salient issue, seeing the effort to oust him as an uphill climb.
Well-defined in the district, Lee has framed her race around fighting Republicans aligned with Donald Trump, bringing federal dollars to the district and bringing new voters into the Democratic fold.
“It’s a testament to her strength that she’s in a good position,” said Nick Gavio, a progressive strategist for the Working Families Party, which spent $320,000 on digital and TV ads on Lee’s behalf.
About that, about a dozen Jewish voters in the district who spoke to NBC News almost universally said that their votes in November, regardless of whether they support Lee or Patel, would be motivated by issues beyond Israel, saying that the Jewish electorate is not a “monolith” and that democracy, the right abortion and the economy weighed heavily on them. Most said they would vote for President Joe Biden.
At a launch event for his “Jews for Summer” coalition earlier this month, Lee framed his primary as a covert Republican effort to divide a multiethnic and interfaith base of support, using divisions over Israel. Although groups aligned with the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee did not get involved in the race, an outside group largely funded by Republican mega-donor Jeffrey Yass spent more than $500,000 to boost Patel — a fact that Lee and his allies emphasized. in the last days of the contest.
“We have communities that are suffering. The Jewish community is one of them. And there are people who… are not going to agree 100% with everything you say,” Lee said in an interview with NBC News, adding that she has been “very clear and very outspoken” about her stance on a ceasefire. “I condemned Hamas. We work with the families of hostages; We have done everything I consider necessary for this. And at the end of the day, we disagree.”
Patel, who denounced Yass and said the attacks over the donation were a distraction, framed his challenge to Lee around who offers Biden the most support. She criticized Lee for not denouncing activists and groups calling on Democratic primary voters to vote “disengaged” in the presidential primaries.
“It’s essentially playing with fire,” Patel said in an interview, arguing that it could boost Trump.
Lee said he voted for Biden on Tuesday and at his “Jews for Summer” event earlier this month said, “We are going to make sure that the person who is sitting in the White House is not replaced.” At a campaign stop in Pittsburgh last week, Biden called Lee someone “who had my back.”
Of the voters who voted uncommitted, Lee told NBC News, “I totally respect that.”
This article was originally published in NBCNews. with
