Liz Wheeler is highlighting claims from former congressional candidate AJ Kern about Rep. Ilhan Omar’s citizenship status, focusing on whether Omar’s father was ever naturalized as a U.S. citizen.

Wheeler said Kern, who ran against Omar in 2022, has argued that there is no evidence showing Omar’s father, Nur Omar Mohammed, completed the naturalization process.

"In 2022, Ilhan Omar is up for re-election. AJ Kern was running against Ilhan Omar. AJ Kern contends that there is no evidence that her father, nor Omar Mohammed, was actually a naturalized citizen."

According to Wheeler, Kern’s argument centers on derivative citizenship, which she said would have required two conditions to be met.

Warning: Account balances and purchasing power no longer tell the same story. Know in 2 minutes if your retirement is working for you.

"Now, this is what AJ Kern wrote for derivative citizenship: two things have to be true. One, her father had to naturalize, and two, she still had to be a minor."

Wheeler continued by saying Kern believes both points are in doubt.

"And what I have found is that it's highly likely that neither of those things are true."

The claim is based in part on a Freedom of Information Act request submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS, seeking records related to Omar’s father.

FREE Gun Law Map: Laws Don't Pause During Social Unrest

"I submitted a request to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services-that's USCIS-seeking naturalization and citizenship records for Ilhan Omar's father, Nur Omar Mohammed."

Wheeler described USCIS as the federal agency responsible for processing and maintaining naturalization records.

"The USCIS is the federal agency that processes and maintains naturalization records."

She then explained the significance of Omar’s age at the time she says she became a citizen.

"Ilhan claims she gained citizenship when she was a 17-year-old minor. Minors cannot naturalize independently, and adults cannot derive citizenship from their parents."

Wheeler said the FOIA request produced no matching index reference for Omar’s father and no matching results under name variations.

"In response to her FOIA request, in which she asked to obtain the records, which should be public records of Ilhan Omar's father's naturalization, we completed a thorough search for records based on the information you provided. Unfortunately, we found no matching index reference. Our search included all variations of the subject's name, including Noor Sayid Elmi Mohamed, with the same results."

Wheeler characterized the result as significant because USCIS would ordinarily be the agency responsible for maintaining records connected to naturalization.

"The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sub agency, which is responsible for all of the records of any immigrant who obtains naturalized citizenship, could not find, did not have, would not produce, could not produce any documents related to Ilhan Omar's father."

She then stated the conclusion she believes follows from the records search.

"There are no records."

Wheeler used that result to question whether Omar’s father was, in fact, naturalized.

"Was Ilhan Omar's father actually a naturalized citizen?"

She then argued that if he was not, it could call into question Omar’s own claim to derivative citizenship.

"Because if not, then Ilhan Omar, for yet another reason, is not a validly naturalized citizen."

Wheeler went further, saying that under that interpretation, Omar’s citizenship would not be valid.

"She would be an invalidly naturalized citizen, which means she's not a citizen at all."

BOMBSHELL: DHS has no record of Ilhan Omar’s father’s citizenship https://t.co/2UxNDMFXGd

— Liz Wheeler (@Liz_Wheeler) October 17, 2026

Wheeler’s argument rests on Kern’s interpretation of the FOIA response and on the absence of matching records under the names searched. The statement does not establish an official legal determination about Omar’s citizenship status, but Wheeler says the lack of records raises questions she believes deserve further scrutiny.

The opinions expressed by contributors and/or content partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of BoredTrashPanda.com. Contact us for guidelines on submitting your own commentary.