Rep. Cori Bush loses Democratic primary after campaign onslaught from pro-Israel groups

Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., has lost her primary, handing a pro-Israel group another victory against a member of the progressive “squad” of lawmakers.

St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell has defeated Bush, NBC News projects. Bell is expected to carry Missouri’s deep-blue 1st Congressional District in November after a primary that exposed the party’s divisions on Israel, with Bush a vocal critic of the Israeli government and the country’s response to Hamas’ terrorist attacks on Oct. 7.

“I’ll be a progressive member of Congress, but I’m also going to be a practical member of Congress,” Bell told NBC News over the weekend. “I recognize that we can’t get anything done without majorities, and so that means we need to work with our fellow Democrats up there, and we also when we can reach across the aisle and work with folks to get things done for this region and for this country.”

United Democracy Project, a super PAC tied to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the pro-Israel lobby, poured nearly $9 million onto the airwaves attacking Bush and boosting Bell. Bell had initially been running for the Senate, but he decided to challenge Bush in a primary a few weeks after the Hamas attacks on Israel.

And the massive funding made the primary one of Tuesday’s highest-profile races, as voters in Kansas, Michigan, Missouri and Washington voted for nominees in congressional races.

While Bush’s criticism of Israel drew millions of dollars into the race, the candidates launched other attacks against each other. Bell argued that Bush has not been an effective congresswoman, pointing to her votes against the bipartisan infrastructure package and the child tax credit.

Bush, meanwhile, focused her closing argument against Bell