ST. LOUIS — Gripping a microphone outside the courthouse where the infamous Dred Scott case over slavery was argued in 1847, former Rep. Cori Bush portrayed her ouster from Congress as another historic setback set to be reversed.
“We’re standing here saying, send back that descendant, send her back to the place that enslaved people built,” Bush said. “This is our moment.” The crowd chanted “send her back.”
A progressive firebrand who started her political career as a Black Lives Matter organizer in Ferguson, Bush served two terms before losing a primary challenge to Wesley Bell, a moderate local prosecutor.
They’re now locked in an intense rematch that will serve as one of the clearest referendums on Democrats’ shifting political landscape, including anger at the party establishment, rising skepticism of the U.S. alliance with Israel and the growing clout of democratic socialists.
Both candidates are Black, with political careers rooted in the modern civil rights movement that began with the police shooting of Michael Brown in 2014. But they’ve taken divergent paths since then, and the race will test whether voters want to reelect Bell, who has fashioned himself as a pragmatist, or return to Bush, who views legislating and activism and inseparable.
Bush lost to Bell by less than six points two years ago. She blamed her loss on the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s spending in the race and told supporters that “all they did was radicalize me.” This time, her scathing criticisms of the war in Gaza and Democratic leaders have become more commonplace within the party, and she claims to have the “moral authority” in the rematch.
PHOTOS: Cori Bush and Wesley Bell’s rematch sets up key test for Democrats in Missouri
“It’s not that they’re necessarily scared of me. They’re scared of what comes with me. They’re scared of y’all,” Bush told an audience of pro-Palestinian activists, Black Lives Matter organizers and democratic socialists who had traveled from across the country to canvass for her in the summer heat. Some held portable fans or poured water on themselves to cool off as they listened to hours of speeches by Bush’s allies near St. Louis’ landmark Gateway Arch.
While Bush was in the park, Bell met with senior citizens at a historic Black church. He has dismissed Bush’s attacks by arguing that he has been a more effective lawmaker, and he rallied with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday night, a sign of support from the Democratic establishment.
“She’s not a serious candidate,” Bell said in an interview. “In this election, the choices are clear. I wake up every day working for St. Louis, and the folks in St. Louis know that I’m going to wake up working for them. And then we’ve got an opponent, Cori, who wakes up thinking about Cori. And we’ve seen it over and over. And that’s why she was fired.”
A personally bitter rematch with national stakes
Early voting for the Aug. 4 primary began Tuesday, but the two candidates have been trading recriminations for months. They accuse each other of misconduct and impropriety.
Bush criticizes Bell over a lawsuit he’s facing from protestors who allege they were assaulted at his town hall last year, and a settlement over employment discrimination claims made by someone who worked in Bell’s office when he was a prosecutor.
Bell highlights a previous Justice Department investigation into Bush’s campaign spending, including how she paid her husband as part of her security detail.
Both candidates deny any wrongdoing.
AIPAC’s role has also drawn national attention to the district at a time when the organization, which advocates for a closer U.S.-Israeli relationship, has been a lightning rod within the Democratic Party.
“Cori is the knockout blow to AIPAC,” said former Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a close ally of Bush who was also defeated in 2024 by an AIPAC-backed primary challenger in a redrawn New York congressional district. Ahead of the recent rally, Bowman recorded a social media video last weekend calling on progressives “from New York to California” to help mobilize voters during early voting.
Deepening hostility toward Israel has spurred concern about antisemitism among some moderate Democrats and Jewish Americans, who believe anti-Israel rhetoric too often bleeds into prejudice. Bush’s recent event included some Jewish faith leaders who share her criticism of Israel, as well as others who echoed hateful tropes.
One former union leader, Jay Ozier, condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “war monger,” condemned the “Israel lobby buying elections” and declared that “we need a representative who is willing to turn over the tables of the money changers.”
The crowd, including Bush, applauded the remarks, and Ozier later defended by noting it was a biblical reference to Jesus chasing merchants out of the Jerusalem Temple.
Bush declined to directly address the comment about “money changers.”
“We condemn anti-Semitism. We condemn anti-Muslim hate, behavior and rhetoric at every chance we get,” Bush said in an interview. “But will Wesley Bell call out those who won’t stand against anti-Muslim sentiment, even in our own community? Will he stand up and fight for the liberation of the Palestinian people?”
AIPAC has spent more than $1.2 million against Bush this year through United Democracy Project, its political action committee, about the same as the group spent opposing her in 2024. New Democrat Majority, which backs moderate House Democrats, has spent an additional $1 million against Bush.
“She was a terrible, ineffective member of Congress who didn’t deliver for St. Louis. We were happy to see her go,” said Patrick Dorton, spokesperson for United Democracy Project.
Bell has emphasized his positions on the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs committees, and he has defended his support of military funding for Israel.
“I think it’s important that we stand with our allies, and there’s going to be times when we disagree and we work those out,” Bell said. “But what we’ve learned in Iraq, what we learned in Afghanistan, is that we can’t do it alone. We need our allies and we also need to be transparent with the American people.”
District’s activist history is shaping campaign
Many residents said their vote would hinge on how candidates had managed issues like procuring recovery funds for a tornado that devastated the St. Louis metropolitan area last year. There was also pervasive discomfort with the role of money in the race.
Allison Johnson said that she and her husband were divided over who to back in the Democratic primary. Her husband was more moderate and liked Bell’s performance in office, but she was concerned about how AIPAC had “dumped” money into the district.
“It doesn’t seem like it should be big money should be influencing this race,” she said.
The primary is also dispiriting for some longtime residents, who watched both Bush and Bell rise as figures in the Black Lives Matter movement.
Bell was elected to the Ferguson city council and later prosecuting attorney for St. Louis County.
“He’s the best person for the job. When he was on council, he and I worked together to get the police reform done,” said Ella Jones, the former mayor of Ferguson and first Black person to hold the role in the city’s history.
Bush was a pastor turned activist and triage nurse in the wake of the 2014 Ferguson protests. She won her House seat on a promise to bring her maverick persona into the halls of Congress.
“I like Cori, I think she is the best choice and has a clear commitment to St. Louis,” said DeRay McKesson, an activist who gained notoriety as a lead organizer during the 2014 protests in Ferguson. “She’s not afraid to challenge power.”
