‘Squad’ Rep. Jamaal Bowman set to lose to NY Democratic rival George Latimer: New Poll

Metro

by Karl Campanile

Far-left “Squad” Rep. Jamaal Bowman is trailing his Democratic rival George Latimer by 17 points ahead of the June 25 primary and is headed for a landslide defeat, a new poll shows.

Latimer, the Westchester County mayor, garnered the support of 48 percent of Democratic primary voters in the 16th Congressional District, while Bowman, a two-term incumbent, received just 31 percent support, according to an Emerson College Poll/PIX11/The Hill poll.

The remaining 21% of respondents in the district, which includes most of Westchester County and parts of the north Bronx, were undecided, according to the survey.

Surveys suggest the war between Israel and Hamas may be playing a major role in the election campaign.

Latimer, 70, is fully siding with Israel in the escalating conflict, while Bowman, 48, was filmed in November calling Israel an “apartheid” state and angrily claiming that Hamas’ alleged rapes and child murders during an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, were “lies.” Bowman later retracted the comments, which were decried as Hamas propaganda.

The survey found that 45% of voters sided with Latimer on the war, 29% sided with Bowman and 26% were unsure.

Either way, regardless of one’s stance on Israel, a growing number of people want an end to the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

A majority of Democratic primary voters (43%) are less likely to support a lawmaker who opposes a ceasefire in Gaza, while 37% are more likely to support a candidate who opposes the ceasefire. The remaining 20% ​​have no opinion.

Half of Democratic primary voters believe the U.S. government is spending too much on aid to Israel in its war against Hamas, and a third think the Biden administration is spending appropriately. 17% think the U.S. is spending too little.

When it comes to humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, 46% say the US spends too little, 34% say it spends the right amount, and 21% say it spends too much.

The poll found that Latimer, a moderate who has served in various offices in Westchester since the late 1980s, is generally viewed more favorably than Bowman, who is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America.

65% of voters said they had a favorable view of Latimer, while 23% said they had an unfavorable view.
12% are undecided.

Meanwhile, 51% have a favorable view of current House members.
They have an unfavorable view of him. Six percent are unfamiliar with Bowman.

The poll showed Latimer leading among white voters by a staggering 42 percentage points, 62% to 20%.

Bowman, who is African-American, led among black voters, but by just 14 points, 48% to 34%.

Hispanic voters are evenly split, with 36% each backing Bowman and Latimer.

There’s also an age gap, with younger voters backing Bowman and older voters backing Latimer.

Voters are also concerned about issues that matter to them.

The economy (22%) and home prices (21%) were the top issues for the district’s Democratic primary voters, followed by threats to democracy (14%), health care (13%), crime (12%) and immigration (6%).

The Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill poll was conducted June 6-8. The sample of 425 likely Democratic voters has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.7 percentage points.

Voters were contacted through automated calls to mobile and landline phones.

A previous poll conducted in April by the Israel Democrats Majority, which supports Latimer, also found the challenger leading Bowman by 17 points, 52% to 35%.

“These are encouraging, but there is only one poll that really matters, and it begins with early voting this Saturday. Voters will be choosing between my track record of delivering truly progressive results and a vote against a sitting president’s divisiveness, dishonesty, hostility toward voters and Democratic priorities,” Latimer said of Tuesday’s poll results.

Early voting begins Saturday.

Bowman, a former Bronx middle school principal, has been dogged by controversy of his own making, as well as his own rhetorical problems and left-wing positions, which have tarnished his reputation.

The Republican-led House of Representatives passed a resolution in December censuring Bowman for setting off a fire alarm in an office building on Capitol Hill on Sept. 30 in an attempt to delay a vote to avert a government shutdown.

He pleaded guilty Oct. 26 to a misdemeanor charge of falsely setting off a fire alarm and agreed to pay a $1,000 fine, claiming it was a mistake.

Bowman is part of an informal group of far-left congresswomen, nicknamed “The Squad” by their followers, that includes Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Cori Bush of Missouri.