Omar Mahmood Fateh ( ; so, Cumar Faatax), is a

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

politician and a member of the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any U.S. state legislature. Floor sessions are h ...

. A member of the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), he represents District 62, which includes parts of south

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Hennepin County Hennepin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its county seat is Minneapolis, the state's most populous city. The county is named in honor of the 17th-century explorer Father Louis Hennepin. The county extends from Minneapo ...

. Fateh is the first

Somali American Somali Americans are Americans of Somali ancestry. The first ethnic Somalis to arrive in the U.S. were sailors who came in the 1920s from British Somaliland. They were followed by students pursuing higher studies in the 1960s and 1970s, by the lat ...

and Muslim to serve in the Minnesota Senate.

Early life and education

Fateh was born in Washington, D.C., and is the son of immigrants from

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

. He graduated from Falls Church High School and earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from George Mason University.

Minnesota Senate

Fateh was an unsuccessful candidate for District 62A of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are 134 members, twice as many as the Minnesota Senate. Floor sessions are held in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint ...

in 2018. In 2020, he announced a primary challenge to incumbent Senator Jeff Hayden. A self-declared

democratic socialist Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management within ...

, Fateh received support from groups such as the

Democratic Socialists of America The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is a Left-wing politics, left-wing Democratic Socialists of America#Tendencies within the DSA, multi-tendency Socialism, socialist and Labour movement, labor-oriented political organization. Its roots ...

and the Sunrise Movement. He also received the

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to i ...

's endorsement. Fateh defeated Hayden in the August primary, 54% to 45%, and was elected to the Minnesota Senate with 88.99% of the vote in the general election.

Personal life

Fateh lives in Minneapolis's Phillips neighborhood.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fateh, Omar American politicians of Somalian descent Minnesota socialists Democratic Socialists of America politicians from Minnesota‎ Democratic Party Minnesota state senators Living people Politicians from Minneapolis Politicians from Washington, D.C. 1990 births African-American Muslims American people of Somali descent

Early life and education

Minnesota Senate

Personal life

See also

References