El-Sayed wins Michigan Senate race, becomes first Muslim American senator
The 42-year-old former public health official defeated Mike Rogers, securing a key seat for Democrats in a tightly contested midterm.
By Sanjay Caldwell ·
Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican challenger Mike Rogers in Michigan's U.S. Senate race, according to an Associated Press call. The victory makes the 42-year-old former public health official the first Muslim American to serve in the Senate.
El-Sayed ran as an antiestablishment candidate focused on single-payer healthcare and reducing corporate influence in politics. He campaigned on anger over the cost of living and corruption, a strategy that energized young and infrequent voters in a perennial Midwest battleground.
The general election followed a heated primary where El-Sayed narrowly beat Representative Haley Stevens by about one percentage point. Stevens had initially supported the Democratic ticket but reversed course in the closing days to endorse Rogers. That shift reflected the difficulty Democrats faced in uniting their coalition in a state where they have held the Senate seat since 1979.
During the primary, El-Sayed drew criticism from some Jewish voters after comments regarding a truck-ramming attack at a synagogue preschool in metro Detroit. He later apologized for those remarks. His campaign also featured a partnership with left-wing streamer Hasan Piker, a move that divided parts of the party base.
Rogers, who lost his first Senate bid in 2024, received an early endorsement from President Trump. Rogers embraced some of the president's claims about election fraud before the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack, though he later condemned them. As the election neared, Rogers attempted to distance himself from certain Trump policies, including the war in Iran.
El-Sayed, a Michigan native who previously ran health departments in Wayne County and Detroit, first entered politics in 2018 with a failed bid for governor. He criticized his opponent and other Republicans for using Islamophobic rhetoric against him during the campaign.
With Michigan holding a prime position in the presidential nominating process for 2028, El-Sayed has signaled he intends to be a prominent voice as Democrats work through questions about their party's identity.
