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| Abdul El-Sayed, pictured in 2025, has won Michigan’s US Senate election. Kenneth C. Zirkel / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0. |
Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has won Michigan’s United States Senate election, becoming the first Muslim elected to the chamber after defeating Republican Mike Rogers.
The Associated Press called the race early on Wednesday, 4 November, following Tuesday’s midterm elections. Provisional returns put El-Sayed at approximately 52 per cent of the vote, against 46.1 per cent for Rogers, with counting still under way. Libertarian Lydia Christensen also contested the seat.
El-Sayed, 42, will succeed retiring Democratic Senator Gary Peters when the new congressional term begins in January 2027. His victory keeps the Michigan seat under Democratic control.
A physician and former public health administrator, El-Sayed was born in Michigan to Egyptian parents. His campaign biography describes his upbringing in the state and his previous work leading health departments in Detroit and Wayne County. He studied at the University of Michigan before obtaining a medical degree from Columbia University and a doctorate at Oxford University.
During the campaign, he advocated universal healthcare through Medicare for All, measures to reduce household costs and restrictions on corporate influence in politics. He also opposed American military assistance to Israel, a position that became a recurring source of disagreement within his party.
Those divisions intensified shortly before polling day when Democratic Representative Haley Stevens, whom El-Sayed defeated in the August primary, endorsed Rogers.
Stevens announced her decision on Sunday, 1 November, after attending a Detroit church service with the Republican candidate. She had initially supported El-Sayed following their primary contest.
The dispute centred partly on an advertisement from Rebellion PAC, an outside political group supporting his candidacy. The advert linked American military spending on Israel to rising grocery prices. Stevens described it as antisemitic and demanded that El-Sayed condemn it.
However, Roll Call reported that El-Sayed said he had neither produced the advertisement nor agreed with its contents. His campaign also stated that it had no affiliation with the advert.
A planned joint appearance involving Stevens, El-Sayed and Representative Jim Clyburn subsequently fell through. El-Sayed’s campaign asked Stevens to stay away from its remaining events.
Her endorsement of Rogers drew criticism from Democratic leaders, including Michigan party chairman Curtis Hertel and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, who continued to support their nominee.
El-Sayed also faced Republican attacks on his Muslim faith and allegations of extremist associations. Reuters reported that those allegations lacked supporting evidence and that he denied them.
Former President Barack Obama campaigned for El-Sayed in Detroit on 24 October, appearing alongside other Democratic candidates.
Michigan backed President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election, when he defeated Kamala Harris in the state by approximately 1.4 percentage points. Rogers narrowly lost Michigan’s other Senate contest that year to Democrat Elissa Slotkin.
The latest result gives El-Sayed his first elected office, eight years after his unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination for governor.