'Squad' member's comeback bid thwarted as establishment Dems notch victory against socialists

A comeback bid launched by former House "Squad" member Cori Bush was thwarted on Tuesday night, as establishment Democrats notched a key victory in the party's civil war with the insurgent left.

Rep. Wesley Bell, D-Mo., defeated the former congresswoman and Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member for the second time since 2024.

Bell ran as a pragmatic alternative to Bush, while still touting himself as a progressive to appeal to Democrats in Missouri's 1st Congressional District.

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Rep. Wesley Bell defeated former Rep. Cori Bush for a second time in the Missouri primary. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

Before coming to Congress, Bell was a Ferguson, Missouri City Council member and a county prosecutor.

Bush made her name in politics as a Black Lives Matter organizer before coming to Congress, serving two terms before losing to Bell.

She blamed her 2024 loss on the hundreds of thousands of dollars that pro-Israel groups from outside her district spent on the race.

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Former Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., attends a news conference in Washington, D.C., on May 8, 2024. (Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The far-left firebrand utilized a similar line of attack against Bell this time around as well, accusing him of being controlled by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

"When the disaster caused $1.6 billion in damages and took several lives, Wesley responded by hopping on a flight to Israel funded by Trump’s donors less than 90 days later," Bush posted on X last week, referring to a 2025 tornado that tore through part of St. Louis.

But those attacks failed to make enough of a dent in Bell's campaign.

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A home in St. Louis sits partially collapsed after the EF-3 tornado in May 2025, leaving bricks and debris piled along the street. (Fox News)

Bush was part of a wave of DSA-linked candidates posing a challenge to Democrats across the country, even unseating several sitting House lawmakers.

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It was a boon for Republicans, who argue that the Democratic Party is being pulled further left than where most Americans are comfortable with, painting the party as out-of-touch.

Bell is now the heavy favorite to win a second term representing the deep-blue district in November.