'That’s Pennsylvania for you': Internet slams progressive congresswoman Summer Lee after her huge victory in Democratic primary

HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA: Rep Summer Lee (D-Pa), a member of the progressive ‘Squad’ of House lawmakers and a vocal critic of Israel's war against Hamas, emerged victorious in the Pennsylvania Democratic primary election on Tuesday, April 23.

Her centrist opponent, Edgewood Borough Councilwoman Bhavini Patel, was defeated by a 19-point margin, with Lee securing 59.5% of the votes cast, and Patel bagging 40.5%, according to the New York Post.

Shortly after it appeared that Lee was on track for victory, she took to X to share, “Opposing genocide is good politics and good policy. #CeasefireNOW”

How did other Pennsylvania lawmakers react to Summer’s primary victory?

The Democratic primary was an early test of how politicians who have espoused anti-Israel views in the aftermath of the Oct 7 attack on the Jewish state and subsequent war will fare against pro-Israel candidates in future primaries.

Bhavini Patel, Rep Lee's Democratic opponent, criticized her stance on Israel as being too extreme for her Pittsburgh-area district. This district includes Squirrel Hill, a historically Jewish neighborhood, and the site of the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue massacre, motivated by antisemitism.

Patel suggested that Lee's far-left ideology will harm President Joe Biden's re-election prospects by alienating Pennsylvania voters, a vital battleground state where the 81-year-old commander-in-chief is in a close contest with former President Donald Trump.

Summer Lee has described the influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee as "an existential threat to all of democracy" and said that the pro-Israel organization is "racist."

In a recent congressional vote, the representative from the 12th District was one of 12 Democrats and one Republican who opposed a resolution condemning Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel.

She was also among the first congressional lawmakers to call for a cease-fire on Israel's military operations in Gaza. 

The Democrat congresswoman and her supporters criticized Patel over the $500,000 in donations her campaign received from Moderate PAC, a political action committee supported by Republican megadonor Jeff Yass. 

In the upcoming November general election, the leftist lawmaker will face Republican James Hayes, who ran unopposed in his district on Tuesday.

It has been reported that Reps Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Cori Bush (D-Mo), and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn), who are known for their progressive stance against Israel, are expected to face more grueling primary races in their upcoming elections.

In contrast, the other two incumbent House members in Pennsylvania who faced primary races, Rep Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa) and Rep Dwight Evans (D-Pa), both secured victories in their respective elections with substantial leads over their opponents.

Fitzpatrick, who represents suburban Philadelphia’s Bucks County and parts of Montgomery County, defeated Mark Houck by over 40 percentage points, while Evans won by a staggering 80 percentage points against Tracey Edwards in the 3rd District, which includes West Philadelphia, most of Center City, and parts of North Philadelphia.

In other news, Sen Bob Casey (D-Pa) and Republican challenger David McCormick emerged victorious in their respective primaries, both running unopposed.

McCormick, a hedge fund manager backed by former President Donald Trump, had previously lost the GOP primary for the Senate to Dr Mehmet Oz during the 2022 midterm elections.

Casey, who is currently serving his third term in the Senate, will be facing McCormick in the upcoming November elections.

The Pennsylvania Senate race is expected to be a crucial contest in determining the party that will control the upper chamber next year.

Democrats were able to flip the Senate seat previously held by former Sen Pat Toomey (R-Pa) in 2022 after Sen John Fetterman (D-Pa) defeated Oz.

Internet weighs in as Summer Lee wins the Democratic primary contest

One X user remarked, "God help us."

Another user claimed, "Far-left, yet votes the mainstream Democratic line every time."

Another user wrote, "Those who vote for such Hamas terrorists apologists should be ashamed."

One user said, "She won in Pittsburgh by criticizing Israel."

Another X user remarked, "That House that our Founding Fathers helped build is crumbling on its foundation..."

Finally, this user tweeted, "That’s Pennsylvania for you. I guess they don’t know right from wrong."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.