Abdul El-Sayed Wins in Michigan, Becomes First Muslim Elected to Senate

Abdul El-Sayed has defeated MAGA Republican Mike Rogers in the race for Michigan’s open Senate seat. The win caps a remarkable run for the insurgent progressive — who ran on bringing prices down, making healthcare available for all, and AI regulation — and marks a significant blow to Donald Trump and the Republican Party. 

El-Sayed will become the first Muslim senator in American history.

The race to replace outgoing Sen. Gary Peters — Democrat — became one of the most vitriolic of the cycle. El-Sayed, a Michigan native and epidemiological physician, was subjected to a barrage of attacks against his Muslim faith and Arab heritage.

Trump and Republicans accused El Sayed of having ties to terrorist groups — including claims that he and his mother were associated with the Muslim Brotherhood. Republicans — and some Democrats — also attempted to frame El-Sayed’s campaign activities alongside leftist Twitch streamer Hasan Piker as a signal of his supposed extremist ideology. At campaign events, Trump continuously mocked El-Sayed’s heritage and name at rallies. Just a week before Election Day, Trump referred to El-Sayed as a “Jihadist Member of the Muslim Brotherhood,” who wanted to institute “Sharia Law” in the United States. Rogers seized on similar lines of attack after winning his own primary, even as he attempted to distance himself from Trump by calling for an end to his trade war with Canada.

Democrats countered with the big guns. Former President Barack Obama campaigned alongside El-Sayed in his tour of contested states, which included Michigan, Ohio, and Georgia. Obama mocked Trump’s obsession with asses and jaw lines and the male physique, and his fixation on remodeling and redecorating the White House. 

“Abdul is as Michigan as it gets,” Obama said of the Senate candidate, drawing comparisons to the right’s attempts to question his own heritage and faith during his presidency.

One Democrat who didn’t get behind El-Sayed was his primary opponent, Rep. Haley Stevens. Throughout the primary, Stevens accused El-Sayed of wanting to “blame all of [his] problems on Jewish Americans” in response to their policy difference over the war in Gaza. The divisions of the primary lingered through the general, and though she for months insisted she supported the Democratic ticket, she formally endorsed Rogers in a shocking move two days before the election.

Editor’s picks

The 250 Greatest Albums of the 21st Century So Far

The 100 Best TV Episodes of All Time

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

100 Best Movies of the 21st Century

It didn’t matter. 

El-Sayed ran on an affordability platform that highlighted his own background in healthcare. He endorsed Medicare for All and widespread reform to the for-profit insurance system, and centered his messaging around sky-high prices resulting from Trump’s war against Iran.

“You shouldn’t have to pay $5 for gas,” he recently told Rolling Stone. “You shouldn’t have to decide whether you can even buy meat at the grocery store because it’s so expensive. You shouldn’t have to worry about seeing a doctor in the richest, most powerful country in the world.” 
Trending Stories
Trump Is Already Crying That He’s Not to Blame for Republican Wipeout
Elizabeth Holmes' Partner Did an AMA About That Shower Scene, His Sniffing, and 'You Can See Everything'
Democrats Win Total Control of Congress
Mick Jagger Praises Sam Fender’s Rolling Stones Cover

“They don’t want to talk about any of that,” he added. “They keep just pointing to my name and my faith.”

It turns out that Michigan voters were more interested in gas prices.