Progressive Democrat Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Senate race, will become first Muslim senator

WASHINGTON (AP) — Progressive favorite Abdul El-Sayed has defeated Republican Mike Rogers in a bitter campaign for Michigan’s open Senate seat, giving the Democratic Party’s left wing a breakthrough victory in one of the nation’s most important swing states.

El-Sayed, the son of Egyptian immigrants, will become the nation’s first Muslim senator. A former public health official who has never held elected office, he rose from a double-digit defeat in Michigan’s Democratic gubernatorial primary eight years ago to win a seat in the U.S. Senate.

“You took a chance on the unlikeliest of candidates,” El-Sayed told a Detroit crowd early Wednesday as he declared victory. “Thank you. This is all yours.”

El-Sayed overcame massive outside spending in both the Democratic primary and general election with a grassroots campaign built around universal health care, removing outside money from elections and sharp criticism of Israel.

Backed by progressive leaders including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, his victory may bolster the movement ahead of the 2028 presidential election, offering evidence that candidates embracing its agenda can win in critical battleground states. Democrats across the country secured sweeping victories, winning in both battleground and deep-red states to claim control of both chambers of Congress.

Republicans had cleared the field for Rogers, a former congressman who narrowly lost a Senate race to then-Rep. Elissa Slotkin two years ago. But Rogers struggled to balance his loyalty to President Donald Trump with concerns over rising prices tied to the war in Iran and economic turmoil from the president’s tariffs.

The campaign also featured bitter attacks over El-Sayed’s criticism of Israel. Trump and other Republicans repeatedly sought to link him to terrorist organizations, despite no evidence of such ties, and questioned his loyalty to the United States.

In his victory speech, El-Sayed said Republicans “went all in on one of the ugliest campaigns that we’ve seen in our lifetimes.”

“They might have been pointing to my name and my faith, but we all know my name and my faith are not why you can’t afford your gas,” he said.

El-Sayed overcame concerns about a divided Democratic coalition

The race became a focal point in the national battle for Senate control after two-term Democratic Sen. Gary Peters decided not to seek reelection.

El-Sayed emerged from a bruising August primary against the establishment-backed Rep. Haley Stevens that drew nearly $60 million in outside spending. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, spent nearly $30 million opposing El-Sayed, its largest investment in a single race. El-Sayed has been a staunch critic of Israel.

The primary exposed divisions within the Democratic coalition. El-Sayed faced criticism from some in Michigan’s Jewish community over his rhetoric, including his statement that “hurt people hurt people” following an attack on a Michigan synagogue earlier this year. He later apologized, saying he was “sorry” to “anyone who feels like my comments might have been hurtful.”

His campaign appearances with Hasan Piker, a popular political streamer who has made inflammatory comments about Israel, Jews and the Sept. 11 attacks, also became a target of criticism.

The discord culminated two days before the election when Stevens endorsed Rogers after appearing at church with him, saying that El-Sayed had not done enough to address the concerns of some communities.

Some Democrats worried about Black voter turnout in Detroit after Stevens carried Wayne County in the primary. Former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris were among the high-profile Democrats who campaigned with El-Sayed in the city to help mobilize voters.

Progressive agenda breaks through in Michigan

El-Sayed campaigned on an unapologetically progressive platform that made some moderate Democrats uneasy. Central to his campaign was Medicare for All, which would replace the current mix of private and public health insurance with a government-run, single-payer system.

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders helped build momentum for El-Sayed early in the campaign, while Ocasio-Cortez joined him for a final campaign swing through Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and the Detroit area.

The victory will give progressives a powerful argument heading into the 2028 presidential election that their agenda can win, even in the nation’s most competitive battleground states.

Republicans opted to run it back with Rogers after his razor-thin 2024 loss, when Slotkin prevailed even as Trump won Michigan by more than a percentage point. Once a CNN contributor who criticized Trump, Rogers has aligned himself more closely with the president in recent years.

Rogers tried to expand his support among Democrats and independents, particularly Black and Jewish voters.

But the political environment raised a fresh challenge for the Republican nominee. Rogers, who chaired the House Intelligence Committee and built much of his career around national security, had to navigate high fuel prices and an unpopular war with Iran while remaining aligned with Trump.

“The war with Iran needs to end, and end quickly,” Rogers wrote on social media in September.

El-Sayed relished in his victory, telling the Republican to enjoy his “retirement.”

“You chose hate and Michigan chose hope,” El-Sayed said. “May we never have to see the likes of you in this state again.”

Joey Cappelletti, The Associated Press