El-Sayed Wins in Michigan, Offers Glimpse of Approach He Will Take to Washington

Riding a giant wave of change, Michigan’s Abdul El-Sayed added to the Democratic victory list early Wednesday, keeping the state in party hands after defeating his opponent Mike Rogers in what was one of the ugliest and most expensive races of the midterm election year. The addition of Dr. El-Sayed to the winners’ circle early Wednesday morning came of his own announcement. While the Decision Desk HQ called the race at 1:33 a.m. ET with 77 percent of the votes counted and a 3.5-point lead over Mr. Rogers, the candidate stepped out early to greet supporters at his Detroit headquarters. He then gave a fiery speech that alternated between anger and hope. “Michigan, we did it,” Dr. El-Sayed said before laying a heavy Arabic accent on the pronunciation of his name. “My name is Abdulrahman Mohammad El-Sayed,” Dr. El-Sayed said to cheers, “and I am so proud and honored to stand here as your senator-elect from the great state of Michigan.” Dr. El-Sayed then added with a laugh that while he typically calls out “Inşallah” or “God willing,” he was adding an “alhamdulillah,” the Arabic for “praise be to God,” to his remarks. “Tonight is the night we have been working for,” he said as his supporters chanted “Abdul.”While the former Wayne County health director insisted his campaign was about putting more money in people’s pockets, providing universal health care, and removing the stench of money in politics, Dr. El-Sayed’s Muslim faith and Middle Eastern roots dominated much of the campaign debate. Throughout the campaign, Dr. El-Sayed made no apologies about his disdain for Israel, his calling the war in Gaza a “genocide,” and ties to antisemitic Twitch streamer Hasan Piker. He suggested that a car‑ramming attack on Temple Israel at West Bloomfield, Michigan, in March may have been deserved since the assailant had lost family in an Israeli airstrike. He later called the remarks a mistake. He has denied any connection to the terrorist-designated Muslim Brotherhood despite his family’s previous associations.In response, President Trump called Dr. El-Sayed a “jihadi” and “terrorist sympathizer.” His Democratic primary rival, Congresswoman Haley Stevens, endorsed Mr. Rogers in the 11th hour after finding Dr. El-Sayed’s tepid response to an antisemitic ad produced by supporters on his behalf to be lacking. During a speech that was laden with barbs for Mr. Trump, Vice President Vance, and Mr. Rogers, Dr. El-Sayed told his rival that he hoped he never set foot in the state again. He called out AIPAC for trying to influence the vote with a multimillion dollar spend on behalf of his opponent, and he accused supporters of Israel’s right to exist of martyring Palestinian children with American-made weapons. Throughout his remarks, Dr. El-Sayed positioned himself as someone who never fought back against racist and hateful attacks and accused his attackers of targeting “the idea of America.” “America is big enough for all of us,” he said, telling the packed and raucous young crowd that “we showed in the battle of the money and the many that the many really can win.” He urged parents to let their kids know “that the bad guys lost.” Dr. El-Sayed’s speech contrasted sharply with another victor in Tuesday’s election, James Talarico, who turned the Texas Senate seat over to a Democrat for the first time in over 30 years. Mr. Talarico also peppered his victory speech with criticism of money in politics, but he salved the division with biblical references to David and Goliath, Jesus’s commandment to love his neighbor, and his view on the holiness of all people.“There is no love of God without love of neighbor,” Mr. Talarico said. “Every single person bears the image of the sacred.” While railing against money in politics, this year’s Michigan race was the most expensive in state history with a combined $330 million spent by both camps. Dr. El-Sayed’s father-in-law contributed at least $300,000 to his campaign while Democratic PACs delivered millions more. Now Dr. El-Sayed must take his anti-money mandate to Washington, D.C., where he says he will enjoy “the delicious irony” of a vice president “constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January.”

El-Sayed Wins in Michigan, Offers Glimpse of Approach He Will Take to Washington

El-Sayed Wins in Michigan, Offers Glimpse of Approach He Will Take to Washington

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