The Democrat primary contest between incumbent Congressman Jamaal Bowman and Westchester County executive George Latimer is garnering national attention because it pits a member of the pro-Palestinian “Squad” against a pro-Israel career centrist Democrat in a congressional district with significant Jewish and black constituencies.  It is an increasingly nasty, expensive, and entertaining campaign, with each man accusing the other of not being a real progressive Democrat, and casting aspersions on his opponent’s ethnic bona fides to represent Westchester’s diverse communities.

Although political pundits are positioning the race as a national referendum between the Democratic Socialist wing of the Democrat party and more moderate Democrats, there are a number of other factors at play, including control of the House of Representatives, U.S. support for Israel, and power politics in über-blue New York State.

As the June 25 primary concludes, a record $23 million has been spent, most in an effort to defeat the bombastic Bowman, who has made a number of ill considered comments about Israel and the October 7 atrocities.  The national Democrats clearly do not want to have a vulnerable candidate in the general election when the party is trying to regain primacy in the House of Representatives.

The closing days of the campaign have brought out the worst constructs of today’s Democrat party, with accusations of racism, antisemitism, and bowing to nefarious outside influences.

The tinderbox was lit months ago by PACs.  The United Democracy Project (UDP), a super-PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is responsible for $14 million of the outlay, nearly all of which is focused on flaying Bowman for his numerous criticisms of Israel.  In contrast, Bowman’s campaign has spent a mere $2 million, helped by funding from the Justice Democrats and the Working Families Party.

Bowman, a former New York City charter school principal, upset longtime respected Democrat congressman and supporter of Israel Elliot Engel, following the George Floyd–obsessed summer of 2020, and won re-election in 2022 despite primary challengers.  However, in 2022, the Republican candidate, Dr. Miriam Levitt-Flisser, made him the worst performing Democrat due to his intemperate remarks about Israel.  In the run-up to the general election, rabbis in the Bronx and Westchester issued strongly worded letters criticizing Bowman’s anti-Israel stance but refused to endorse Levitt-Flisser.

In addition to his anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian stance, Bowman has embarrassed suburban Democrats for his buffoonery.  He interrupted a critical vote in Congress by pulling a fire alarm, lied, and got caught.  He’s appeared on Steven Colbert’s late night show spouting hip-hop verses so bad that Colbert quickly cut to a commercial.

George Latimer has a long, successful, and undistinguished record as an elected official.  County legislator, assemblyman, state senator, and currently county executive of Westchester, he is the exemplar of well played local politics.  A moderate Democrat, he is a popular go-along-to-get-along politician.

His ubiquitous social media ads say “Progressive Results,” touting his banning gun shows from the County Center and protecting abortion.  As political sales pitches go, both show Latimer’s unsubstantial political style.  Westchester had a single annual gun show at the County Center, and abortion up to the moment of birth is memorialized in New York State law.

Each man is throwing MAGA bombs.  In one debate between the two men, Bowman slammed Latimer for getting “Republican racist MAGA Trump money.”  The Latimer campaign, through a PAC mailer, blasted: “When it mattered most, Jamaal Bowman has sided with MAGA Republicans over President Biden, the Democratic Party and our communities.”

In fact, there are a number of Republicans, including ones who would qualify as MAGA, who changed voter registrations for the specific purpose of voting for Latimer.  A smaller number switched to vote for Bowman, in the hope that he would be the weaker candidate in the general election against Dr. Levitt-Flisser, who is running for a second time.  Bowman did vote against Biden’s infrastructure bill.

Latimer has the support of most of the rabbis in Westchester.  On Bowman’s side are Jews for Jamaal, Protect our Power, and Jewish Vote for Peace.  However, he lost the J Street endorsement, which helped him in 2022.

Latimer’s surrogate UDP has sent out massive numbers of expensive glossy mailers.  A recent mailing states, “Working with President Biden to invest in our infrastructure and save our economy is good for the country & the right thing to do.”  An anti-Bowman ad accuses Bowman of having “his own agenda and he’s hurting New York.”

These memes became more explicit in the candidate’s final debate.  Latimer charged, “Your constituency is Dearborn, Michigan, your constituency is San Francisco,” which Bowman immediately characterized as “anti-Muslim.”  Bowman followed up by accusing Latimer of trying to keep Westchester segregated.

On the hot and muggy Saturday before the primary, the Democratic Socialists of America, headlined by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders, staged a rally in the Bronx for Bowman.  It went badly.  An anti-Israeli group, Within Our Lifetime, held a raucous counter-rally.  Much profanity ensued, according to the New York Post.

How this invective will roll with Westchester’s Democrats is unclear.  The 16th Congressional District includes all of lower Westchester and parts of the Northern Bronx.  The district is 42% white, 27% Hispanic, and 21% black.  Jews constitute 20% of Westchester voters.  Voter registration is 2.4 to 1 Democrat in Westchester and 90% in the Bronx.  Though an affluent county as a whole, Westchester is racially and economically diverse.  But on the whole, everyone seems to get along reasonably well.

With polling from Emerson and others showing Latimer 17 points ahead, it is hard to think the relatively underfunded Bowman will prevail.

In the general election, the issues will switch to what each party brings to Westchester voters.  Will voters opt for the party that appears increasingly chaotic and willing to kowtow to antisemitism or the one that continues to advance social norms and support Israel?  The outcome may depend on whether Bowman decides to run on the Working Families Party line in November.

Linda R. Killian is a retired financial analyst and a Republican chairman in Westchester County.

Image: William Warby via Flickr, CC BY 2.0.