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MICHIGAN ~ Progressive Abdul El-Sayed has come out on top in a grueling primary that divided the Michigan Democratic Party, and will now face off against Republican Mike Rogers in the next general election to decide Michigan’s next Senator.
The race was called Wednesday morning, with El-Sayed narrowly beating U.S. Rep Haley Stevens, who conceded victory to him at around 10 a.m. With 99% of votes reported, according to the Associated Press, El-Sayed won with 48.5% of the vote over Stevens’ share of 47.5%.
“We took on a machine,” El-Sayed said during his victory speech. “You’re not supposed to be able to beat $70 million of outside spending, a record amount of money spent in a campaign against a Democrat in a primary in any campaign. You’re not supposed to be able to beat that.
“What we showed is that the power of our many is greater than the power of their money. What we showed is that if you’re willing to build a movement brick by brick, if you’re willing to go and travel your state and have the conversations in rooms big and small, starting in moments when people aren’t even paying attention to an election, but are paying attention to the price of gas, the price of groceries, the price of housing, and the price of health care, that you can build a conversation that builds into a movement that defeats Goliath.”
Rogers, a former member of the U.S. House, ran unopposed in the GOP primary, meaning he and El-Sayed are locked in for a highly competitive general election race on Nov. 3. Michigan’s Senate has already drawn national attention, as the competitive general election will likely be a key seat that decides party control of the narrowly divided U.S. Senate. The seat is also uncontested, since current Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) chose not to seek re-election this year.
El-Sayed and Stevens already fought in fierce campaigns over ideology and campaign fundraising. Stevens ran a more politically moderate campaign, claiming that her opponent’s platform is too extreme to win a general election. El-Sayed’s campaign was defined by his progressive policies like Medicare for All and implementing an arms embargo on Israel, criticizing his opponent for taking donations from entities like DTE and AIPAC.
During his victory speech, the former Wayne County public health official took jabs at Rogers and challenged him to five debates during the general election race. “Mike Rogers is a guy whose politics and vision and perspective are old. Mike Rogers is a guy who has never shied away from a corporation he could do a favor for,” he said.
“I want to congratulate Abdul El-Sayed on winning the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate,” Stevens said in her concession letter. “He is a doctor, a community health official, a Rhodes Scholar, and a dedicated Michigander. I am proud to offer my support as he takes on Mike Rogers in the general election.”
El-Sayed has already nabbed major endorsements following his win, including McMorrow, who publicly endorsed him as results were coming in. Peters, who previously endorsed Stevens in the primary, switched his endorsement to El-Sayed shortly after the race was called. “The stakes could not be higher, and that’s why I’m endorsing Abdul to be Michigan’s next U.S. Senator,” he wrote on X.
The results from Tuesday’s election did not reflect polls conducted shortly before the primary, with some polls projecting El-Sayed to win by 15%. RealClearPolitics’ polling average suggested Abdul was up by 10.2%.
