Who Is Ilhan Omar's Husband? Tim Mynett's Consulting Firm Paid $878K By Wife Since They Wed
He's Omar's third husband.
Phil Pasquini / Shutterstock Rep. Ilhan Omar has been the target of many of Donald Trump's racist tirades since she got into office. And while many of the criticisms lobbed against her have been unreasonable, to say the least, this latest criticism seems to have some serious, non-political legs.
According to a recent report, Omar's third husband is at the center of a controversy involving hefty payments to her new husband's consulting firm. Omar's third husband's ex-wife first hinted at the impropriety in her divorce filing. But a Federal filing recently confirmed her allegations.
Who is Ilhan Omar's husband, Tim Mynett — and why has Omar paid his consulting firm so much money since they wed?
He's a political consultant.
When Omar tied the knot with Mynett, DC watchers were wondering how the duo met. And in their wedding announcement, it was revealed that he was a political consultant with the E Street Group, who actually worked with Omar on her election campaign. Omar also shared a selfie of the newly married couple on Instagram, which you can see below.
He's Omar's third husband.
Mynett is Omar's third husband. She was married to her first husband, Ahmed Nur Sali Elmi, from 2009 to 2017 — and he was frequently the subject of many a right-wing smear campaign, who claimed that he was her "brother" and that she only married him to "get her papers" (that is, become a United States citizen). Her second husband, Ahmed Irsi, was only her husband for a year (from 2018 to 2019) before they filed for divorce. Omar claimed that the constant barrage of attacks against her led to their split. Omar shares three children with Irsi for rather complicated reasons — she first got engaged to him in 2002, and the couple applied for a marriage license (but the license was never filed or finalized). At that time, Omar said that she and Irsi were in a "faith-based" marriage (so, more in "name only" rather than "on paper"), and they had two children together.
Then, in 2009, she got married to Elmi, who was a British citizen — and, legally, she could do that without a problem because she wasn't "legally married" to Irsi. In 2011, Omar and Elmi had a "faith-based" divorce, and she then reunited with Irsi and had a third child by him. In 2017, she legally divorced Elmi, and married Irsi legally a year later. In 2019, Omar divorced Irsi, and in March 2020, she married Mynett.
Mynett's ex-wife claims that her ex-husband and Omar were having an affair.
Mynett's first wife, Beth Jordan Mynett, was married to him from 2012 until 2019. When Mynett filed for divorce, Beth Jordan Mynett claimed that her husband and Omar were having an affair. "The parties physically separated on or about April 7, 2019, when Defendant told Plaintiff that he was romantically involved with and in love with another woman, Ilhan Omar. "Defendant met Rep. Omar while working for her. Although devastated by the betrayal and deceit that preceded his abrupt declaration, Plaintiff told Defendant that she loved him, and was willing to fight for the marriage. Defendant, however, told her that was not an option for him and moved out the next day," she wrote in the divorce papers.
At the time of his divorce, Omar had paid Mynett more than $200,000 in "consulting fees."
When word of his divorce from his first wife was made public, it was revealed that Omar had paid Mynett's company, the E Street Group, more than $200,000 in "consulting fees" which also included digital communications, internet advertising, and travel expenses. Beth Jordan Mynett alleged that her now-ex-husband's "travel" with Omar involved a lot more than just business.
But recent Federal filings show that Mynett actually received a lot more than 200K.
According to Federal Election Commission Filings, Mynett's company received a lot more than $200,000 in consulting fees. In total, he received $878,930.65 since he began working for her in 2018, which has "raised some eyebrows" amongst watchdog groups, who believe this is a sign of cronyism. And while legally politicians are allowed to hire their spouses to work on their campaigns, there are some in DC who believe the practice should be outlawed.
“It should not be allowed,” said attorney Richard W. Painter, who served as a chief ethics lawyer for George W. Bush. “I think it’s a horrible idea to allow it, given the amount of money that goes into these campaigns from special interests.”
Neither Omar nor Mynett have made any comment since the allegations were brought tlight.
As of this writing, neither Omar nor Mynett had any comment regarding the allegations. However, we will keep you posted if this changes, and keep you updated of any developments to this story.
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, publicist, and photographer whose work has appeared in Teen Vogue, People, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, BET.com, and more.