Progressives fear a Jamaal Bowman loss in NY could empower rightwing big money

On the eve of the New York Democratic primary race, progressives are expressing concern that if Representative Jamaal Bowman loses his seat in the most expensive House race in US history, it could further empower right-wing megadonors.

These concerns come as Bowman trails his opponent, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, in recent polls by around 17 points, following months of heavy spending by right-leaning political action committees. 

"This election is not about Jamaal versus Mr. Latimer. This election is about whether or not the billionaire class and the oligarchs will control the United States government," said Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont at a rally for Bowman in the Bronx over the weekend, referring to Tuesday's Democratic congressional primary in New York's 16th District as one of the most important in modern US history.

"What this election is about is that in an unprecedented way, never before in history, have powerful special interests spent so much money trying to defeat a candidate," he said. 

"If they are successful in defeating Jamaal, every member of Congress, when asked to stand up... they're gonna back off, and they're gonna say: no, I'm not gonna stand up to the powerful special interests. Look what they did to Bowman in the Bronx," he said, stressing his belief that this election is about defending democracy. 

Among the biggest spenders supporting Latimer against Bowman are the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) through its super PAC the United Democracy Project and Fairshake, backed by Silicon Valley executives with links to cryptocurrency (the PAC promotes business deregulation, but its name is almost identical to FairShake, a consumer rights advocacy group).

This massive funding, which has reached more than $14 million by AIPAC's super PAC alone, has become was of the key concerns for progressives, who argue that outsized spending distorts the democratic concept of one person-one vote.

"I think absolutely, it's a warning sign for the future of our democracy," Usamah Andrabi, communications director for Justice Democrats, told The New Arab. He emphasised that he still believes in the power of community organising, saying, "Where they have the money, we have the people."

With only hours until voters head to the polls, it is difficult to see how Bowman's campaign can turn around his polling deficit.

"I think at this point, it would be a surprise if Bowman won," J. Miles Coleman, associate editor of Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, told TNA.

"I was looking at the campaign finance data. The outside spending dynamic has been three to one against Bowman," he said. "Finance is one of the best proxies to show where things stand."