Michigan rejected ‘hateful, spiteful campaign’, says El-Sayed

Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed said on Wednesday that Michigan voters had rejected “a hateful, spiteful campaign” after months of attacks on his Muslim identity in one of the nation’s most closely watched Senate races, the Associated Press (AP) reported.

El-Sayed said he was “running on adrenaline and caffeine” after his race with Republican Mike Rogers was called early Wednesday, giving Democrats another significant victory in a premier swing state as they won a substantial majority in the Senate in Tuesday’s midterms.

El-Sayed was born in the United States after his parents immigrated from Egypt.

“Michigan proved just how big we are. Rejected a hateful, spiteful campaign that had nothing to say about the issues and only wanted to point to my name and my face,” El-Sayed said.

“Michiganders rejected that. Every single county, every single one, pushed against that.”

El-Sayed, who will become the nation’s first Muslim senator, told the AP by phone that the morning was “a moment of reflection,” including about what his victory would mean to his two young daughters.

His three-year-old, he said, has no idea what happened, while his eight-year-old understands but sees it as normal.

“Now, this is something they read about in the history books,” he said.

With approximately 97% of the vote in, El-Sayed held a 7.0 percentage point lead over Rogers.

Every county in the state shifted toward Democrats compared with 2024, according to AP voting data.