Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed wins Senate seat, becoming first Muslim US senator
The gist
Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican Mike Rogers in the state's open Senate race, an AP race call said.
He will be the first Muslim American in the Senate, in a seat Democrats held since 1979.
How it unfolded
- Aug 4, 2026Michigan held its Democratic Senate primary; El-Sayed narrowly defeated Rep. Haley Stevens by about 1 percentage point.
- Aug 5, 2026El-Sayed's primary win was reported as sending "tremors" through the Democratic Party, after he had led Stevens by a comfortable margin for weeks.
- Oct 7, 2026El-Sayed and Mike Rogers met in their first Michigan Senate debate, frequently exchanging insults amid questions about gas prices, the war in Iran and tariffs.
Key terms
- primary
- An election in which voters of a political party choose that party's candidate for an upcoming general election.
- tariffs
- A tax imposed by a government on imported goods, paid by the importer.
Source: Wikipedia