Ilhan Omar
U.S. Representative from MN, District 5
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Biography
Ilhan Omar is a Democratic U.S. Representative from Minnesota's 5th District, one of the first Somali American and Muslim women in Congress and progressive 'Squad' member.
Ilhan Omar is the U.S. Representative for Minnesota's 5th Congressional District, a Democrat first elected in 2018 and currently serving her fourth term. She represents a district covering Minneapolis and several inner-ring suburbs. Born in Mogadishu, Somalia, Omar fled the Somali civil war with her family and spent four years in a Kenyan refugee camp before resettling in Minneapolis. A North Dakota State University graduate, she worked as a nutrition educator and policy aide before serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives. She became the first Somali American and, alongside Rashida Tlaib, one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress. A member of the progressive 'Squad,' she serves on the House Education and the Workforce Committee with assignment to Higher Education and Workforce Development, focusing on housing, refugee and immigration policy, and U.S. foreign relations.