MINNESOTA – Julie Le, a former attorney for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, has announced her congressional bid with the goal of challenging Ilhan Omar in the Democratic primary election on August 11, 2026.
Julie Le, 47, previously served as assistant chief counsel at DHS, providing legal representation for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in immigration-related cases.
Her name drew attention last month when she told the court that her job was “terrible” while presenting before Jerry Blackwell at a court in St. Paul.
During the hearing, she asked the judge to hold her in contempt so she could take a break after an intense work period. The remark quickly went viral on social media.
Julie Le said she was fired just hours after making that statement. Following the incident, she decided to enter politics, arguing that new lawmakers have the authority to amend laws and reform the system.
In her campaign, she said her key priorities include immigration policy reform, increased education funding, and expanded access to healthcare.
Julie Le was born in Vietnam, left the country after the war, and grew up partly in the Philippines before coming to the United States with her family in 1993 as a refugee.
Rep. Ilhan Omar currently represents a Minnesota district in the U.S. House of Representatives and has repeatedly called for the abolition of ICE, the federal immigration enforcement agency.
