After Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar joins progressive lawmakers' winning string; Trump wins Republican primary
text_fieldsNew York: After Ilhan Omar, a prominent progressive lawmaker known for her strong critics against US president Donald Trump, sailed to victory in Democratic primary.
Omar, the first Somali-American member of the Congress, defeated Antone Melton-Meaux, a lawyer and mediator who raised millions in anti-Omar money, in Minnesota district.
Omar, who is seeking her second term to Congress in November, expanded her voter base by winning 57 percent of the vote against her two challengers compared with her 48 percent victory in the 2018 primary.
Minnesota is predominantly Democratic, and she is expected to win in November.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has won Connecticut's Republican presidential primary.
Trump on Tuesday defeated California real estate developer and perennial candidate Rocky De La Fuente. Former Massachusetts Governor William Weld and former Illinois congressman Joe Walsh were also in the race at one point but later withdrew.
Connecticut Republican Party chair J R Romano had criticised Secretary of the State Denise Merrill for holding a GOP primary, saying it was a waste of money for communities because Trump faced no viable competition. Merrill argued that she was following state law.
De La Fuente was endorsed by the Alliance and Reform parties and has appeared on the ballot in at least a half dozen states as a Republican. He is the onetime owner of more than two dozen car dealerships.
In 2016, Connecticut went for Democrat Hillary Clinton over the Republican Trump by about 13 percentage points.