George Latimer wins NY-16 primary, CBS News projects, beating incumbent Jamaal Bowman

NEW YORK – CBS News projects George Latimer has won the closely watched Democratic Primary Election in New York’s 16th Congressional District, beating incumbent Jamaal Bowman.

It was the most expensive House primary race in U.S. history: More than $25 million was raised and spent. 

A recent Emerson College poll showed Latimer, who got into the race in December, pulling significantly ahead of Bowman 48%-31%, with 21% of voters undecided.   

The race divided prominent Democrats. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Bowman, while Latimer was endorsed by former first lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a Westchester County resident, as well as Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey along with former Bowman ally Mondaire Jones.

Speaking to supporters Tuesday night, Latimer talked about the need to bind the wounds of division in the district and the nation.

“We have to find each other, and link with each other. We have to look at the arguments of the far right and the far left, and say you cannot destroy this country with your rhetoric and your arguments,” he said. “We have to have unity all across that continuum, and if you hold the strong belief you still must work with other people who don’t share that belief because America hangs in the balance.”

Bowman also spoke to his own supporters.

“We should not be well adjusted to a sick society. We should be outraged. We should be outraged when a Super PAC of dark money can spend $20 million to brainwash people into believing something that isn’t true. We should be outraged about that,” he said.

He also hinted at running again in the future.

“You know Jamaal Bowman ain’t going nowhere, right? Because if we can raise $5 million in six months, what can we do in about a year, a year and a half?” he said. “There’s a lot of other seats to run for, you know what I’m saying?”

What’s at stake

The race has been highly scrutinized because it was viewed as a battle between the Democratic party’s left and centrist wings. A core distinction between Bowman and Latimer was their approaches on the Israel-Hamas war. Bowman, the incumbent, has been highly critical of Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, and has called for a cease-fire. 

Latimer currently serves as the Westchester County Executive. He is broadly supportive of Israel since the attack, even visiting the country. 

Another point of interest for political observers is that Bowman is also a member of the so-called “Squad,” which includes Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. Bowman is the first member of the “Squad” to lose a race, unseated by a centrist.

“One side has tremendous resources, and the other side has organizing ability. What we’ll see here is if the money outweighs the bodies on the streets, and it’s likely that the money will,” political strategist Hank Sheinkopf said.   

Meanwhile, CBS News projects Ocasio-Cortez has won the Democratic Primary in New York’s 14th Congressional District, beating challenger Martin Dolan.

Sprint to the finish

It was a sprint to the finish for both Bowman and Latimer, who had busy days. Bowman visited various polling centers, whereas Latimer focused his time at local businesses. 

“This is the many versus the money. We can not let big money come into our district and buy our district,” Bowman said. 

“The people on the far left, the Squad, are about making statements, and sort of trying to move the dialogue. I’m not worried about moving dialogue. I want to see if we can solve problems,” Latimer said. 

Voters get their say

The torrent of ads appeared to affect some, but others said it’s everyday issues and day-to-day performance informing their decisions.   

“Some people said vote for Bowman, but then why is he getting so much negative press?” one voter said, who added that the ads had influenced their decision. 

“Healthcare is always a thing. Crime is always an issue,” voter Jacob Mobley said. 

“Someone who is loyal, consistent, and doesn’t just show up be voted in, but someone who is actually going to be here consistently, said voter Zamirah El-Amin.