Cori Bush

Cori Bush
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Missouri's 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2021
Preceded byLacy Clay
Personal details
Born (1976-07-21) July 21, 1976 (age 48)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse
Cortney Merritts
​
(m. 2023)​
Children2
EducationHarris-Stowe State University
Lutheran School of Nursing
WebsiteHouse website
Cori Bush's voice
Bush speaks in support of the Equal Rights Amendment.
Recorded March 27, 2023

Cori Anika Bush (born July 21, 1976)[1] is an American politician, nurse, pastor, and Black Lives Matter activist serving as the U.S. representative for Missouri's 1st congressional district, since 2021.[2][3] The district includes all of the city of St. Louis and most of northern St. Louis County.

A member of the Democratic Party, Bush defeated 10-term incumbent Lacy Clay in a 2020 U.S. House of Representatives primary election primarily viewed as an upset, advancing to the November general election in a solidly Democratic congressional district. Bush is the first African-American woman to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives from Missouri. She ran unsuccessfully in the Democratic primary for the district in 2018 and the 2016 U.S. Senate election in Missouri. Bush was featured in the 2019 Netflix documentary Knock Down the House, which covered her first primary challenge to Clay. Bush is a member of the Squad in the House of Representatives.[4]

In August 2024, Bush lost the Democratic nomination for her seat to primary challenger Wesley Bell (45.6% vs. 51.1%).[5] Pro-Israel lobbying groups spent large amounts to defeat Bush.[6][7]

  1. ^ "Cori Bush". Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  2. ^ "Meet Cori Bush, the Ferguson Activist Vying to Be Missouri's First Black Congresswoman". July 31, 2018. Archived from the original on November 14, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference thehillblm was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Progressive 'Squad' Member Cori Bush Beats Moderate Challenger in Democratic Primary". Forbes.
  5. ^ Trudo, Hanna (August 7, 2024). "Cori Bush loses Missouri primary in latest blow to progressive 'squad'". The Hill. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  6. ^ "Wesley Bell defeats 'Squad' member Cori Bush. A pro-Israel group spent $8.5 million to help oust her". AP News. August 6, 2024. Retrieved August 7, 2024.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference a999 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).