Ilhan Omar Faces New Birth-Year Scrutiny

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., faces renewed scrutiny over her immigration history after emails obtained by the New York Post reportedly show her congressional staff sought to change her birth year in public records in May 2019, several months after she took office.

Omar’s birth date has long been listed publicly as Oct. 4, 1981. The emails indicate the year was changed to 1982, a discrepancy that has drawn attention because of questions surrounding her account of how she obtained U.S. citizenship. Omar has said she derived citizenship through her father when she was a minor. Critics argue that if she was born in 1981 rather than 1982, her age at the time could complicate that account, depending on the circumstances of her father’s naturalization and the citizenship rules that applied.

AJ Kern, a political opponent who challenged Omar in the 2022 Democratic primary for Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District, has questioned whether the requirements for derivative citizenship were met. “For derivative citizenship, two things have to be true,” Kern told the Post. “One, her father had to naturalize; and two, she still had to be a minor.” Kern previously filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission seeking proof of Omar’s citizenship. He told the outlet that the complaint did not advance after a judge determined that vetting members of Congress was a responsibility of Congress itself.

The timing of the reported staff effort, months after Omar entered Congress, has sharpened the questions. The reported birth-year change does not, by itself, establish that Omar obtained citizenship improperly or that any law was broken. Determining its significance would require establishing the accuracy of the underlying records, the reason for the change and the full details of her citizenship history.

The allegations have resurfaced amid broader scrutiny of Omar, including a separate financial investigation involving questions about disclosures related to her husband’s business interests. Federal agents also searched her Washington-area residence on Monday, although the search alone does not establish wrongdoing in either matter.

Omar has repeatedly denied allegations challenging her immigration history. The reported emails have renewed debate over the discrepancy, but the claims about her eligibility for citizenship remain allegations rather than established findings.