Former Minneapolis City Council member, Don Samuels, as he door knocked for President Biden in north Minneapolis on Super Tuesday, March 5, 2024. His campaign against Rep. Ilhan Omar for Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District raised over $400,000 in the first quarter of 2024, according to the campaign’s latest filing with the Federal Election Commission. Mshale Staff Photo by Jasmine Webber
Former Minneapolis City Council member, Don Samuels, as he door knocked for President Biden in north Minneapolis on Super Tuesday, March 5, 2024. His campaign against Rep. Ilhan Omar for Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District raised over $400,000 in the first quarter of 2024, according to the campaign’s latest filing with the Federal Election Commission. Mshale Staff Photo by Jasmine Webber

Former Minneapolis City Council member Don Samuels, a Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, raised $400,034 in the first quarter of 2024, according to required filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

Mr. Samuels is the main challenger to incumbent Rep. Ilhan Omar in Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District. He ran against the congresswoman in 2022 and lost by two percentage points, the closest someone has come to unseating her.

He entered the new year with $346,799 cash on hand and finished the quarter with $212,605, according to the campaign’s FEC filings on Monday (4/15).

In comparison, the Omar campaign raised $1.6 million in the first quarter, and closed it with almost $2.2 million cash on hand. In a statement last week in advance of the legally required filing, the congresswoman said it is the most money she has ever raised and was “thankful and proud of the grassroots support from small-dollar donations.”

In a news release Monday, The Samuels campaign said it has “invested heavily in building the field team necessary to prevail in this year’s contest.” The field team consists of more than 20 staff members and will continue to grow, according to the campaign.

“Given the momentum of our last campaign, we made an early decision to invest in the staff necessary to engage the thousands of supporters and hundreds of volunteers who know that we need new leadership in Washington–and an end to the cynical and divisive politics that has been so successful in dividing neighbors and even family members against one another. This is a people-powered campaign,” said Mr. Samuels.

About Tom Gitaa Gitaa, Editor-in-Chief

Born and raised in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa, Tom is the Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Mshale which has been reporting on the news and culture of African immigrants in the United States since 1995. He has a BA in Business from Metro State University and a Public Leadership Credential from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He was the original host of Talking Drum, the signature current affairs show on the African Broadcasting Network (ABN-America), which was available nationwide in the United States via the Dish Network satellite service. On the show, he interviewed Nobel laureates such as 2004 Nobel Peace prize winner, Professor Wangari Maathai, the first woman from Africa to win the peace prize and heads of states. Tom has served and chaired various boards including Global Minnesota (formerly Minnesota International Center), the sixth largest World Affairs Council in the United States. He has previously served as the first Black President of the Board of Directors at Books for Africa. He also serves on the boards of New Vision Foundation and the Minnesota Multicultural Media Consortium. He has previously served two terms on the board of the United Nations Association. An avid runner, he retired from running full marathons after turning 50 and now only focuses on training for half marathons.

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