Why AP called Missouri’s 1st District primary for Wesley Bell over Rep. Cori Bush

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wesley Bell’s sizable vote lead in St. Louis County and competitive showing in St. Louis city propelled him to victory over U.S. Rep. Cori Bush in the Democratic primary in Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, according to an Associated Press analysis of initial vote results.

The result marks the second primary defeat this year of a Democratic U.S. House incumbent.

Here’s a look at how the AP determined the winner:

U.S. House, Missouri’s 1st District (D)

CANDIDATES: Bush, Bell

WINNER: Bell

CALLED AT: 10:59 p.m. ET

POLL CLOSING TIME: 8 p.m. ET

ABOUT THE RACE: The Democratic primary in Missouri’s 1st Congressional District is the latest contest this year to highlight a deep division within the party over the Israel-Hamas war, even as both candidates tried to keep the district’s top local priorities in the foreground. In June, Democrat George Latimer defeated U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman in New York’s 16th Congressional District in a race that fell along similar fault lines. Both Bush and Bowman, members of the group of U.S. House progressives known as “ the Squad,” have been vocal critics of Israel’s response to the October 2023 surprise attacks by Hamas, with Bush saying the nation has engaged in an “ethnic cleansing campaign” against Palestinians. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s super PAC, which helped topple Bowman, has backed Bell, the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney. Bush has the support of House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. The 1st District is in eastern Missouri along the Mississippi River on the border with Illinois. It includes the city of St. Louis as well as part of surrounding St. Louis County.

WHY AP CALLED THE RACE: Bush was first elected in 2020 after narrowly defeating longtime U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay in the Democratic primary. That year in a similarly shaped district, Bush’s victory was possible because of her big win in the city of St. Louis. That more than made up for her close loss in St. Louis County, even though the county comprised more than half of the district’s total vote. Clay beat Bush in St. Louis County, 49% to about 46%, while Bush far outperformed Clay in the city, 52% to 42%. A third candidate, Katherine Bruckner, syphoned off nearly 7% of the vote in the city and 5% in the county.

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In order to beat back Bell’s primary challenge, Bush would have needed to post a large victory margin in St. Louis city and remained competitive in St. Louis County.

Bell, however, built a sizable and consistent lead in St. Louis County and held Bush to a smaller lead in St. Louis city.

Bush was on track to do slightly worse in the city than she did in her 2020 performance and significantly worse in the much larger jurisdiction of St. Louis County, which makes up about 59% of the 1st District’s population. At the time AP called the race, Bush led Bell in the city by a little more than 8 percentage points, slightly less than the 10-point margin she enjoyed four years ago. Meanwhile, Bell held a 16-point lead in St. Louis County, much larger than Clay’s 4-point lead in the county in his close 2020 loss.

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Associated Press writer Maya Sweedler in Washington contributed to this report.