Omar, Ilhan, 1982-

<p>Ilhan Abdullahi Omar (born October 4, 1982) is an American politician serving as the U.S. Representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district since 2019. She is a member of the Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. Before her election to Congress, Omar served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2017 to 2019, representing part of Minneapolis. Her congressional district includes all of Minneapolis and some of its suburbs.</p>

<p>Omar serves as whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and has advocated for a living wage, affordable housing, universal healthcare, student loan debt forgiveness, the protection of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, and abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). She has strongly opposed the immigration policies of the Trump administration, including the Trump travel ban. A frequent critic of Israel, Omar has denounced its settlement policy and military campaigns in the occupied Palestinian territories, and what she describes as the influence of pro-Israel lobbies.</p>

<p>Omar is the first Somali American, the first naturalized citizen of African birth, and the first woman of color to represent Minnesota in the United States Congress. She is also one of the first two Muslim women (along with Rashida Tlaib) to serve in Congress. She has been the subject of several death threats, conspiracy theories, harassment by political opponents, and false and misleading claims by Donald Trump.</p>

OMAR, Ilhan, a Representative from Minnesota; born in Mogadishu, Somalia, October 4, 1982; graduated from Edison High School, Minneapolis, Minn.; B.A., North Dakota State University, Fargo, N. Dak., 2011; B.S., North Dakota State University, Fargo, N. Dak., 2011; teacher; campaign manager; non-profit executive; staff, Minnesota department of education, 2012-2013; staff, Minneapolis city council, 2013-2015; member of the Minnesota state house of representatives, 2017-2019; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Sixteenth and to the succeeding Congress (January 3, 2019-present).

<p>Rep. Ilhan Omar represents Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, which includes Minneapolis and surrounding suburbs.</p>

<p>An experienced Twin Cities policy analyst, organizer, public speaker and advocate, Rep. Omar was sworn into office in January 2019, making her the first African refugee to become a Member of Congress, the first woman of color to represent Minnesota, and one of the first two Muslim-American women elected to Congress.</p>

<p>As a legislator, Rep. Omar is committed to fighting for the shared values of the 5th District, values that put people at the center of our democracy. She plans to focus on tackling many of the issues that she hears about most from her constituents, like investing in education and freeing students from the shackles of debt; ensuring a fair wage for a hard day’s work; creating a just immigration system and tackling the existential threat of climate change.</p>