Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Senate primary after $65M race

Progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed won the Democratic primary for Michigan’s open US Senate seat on Tuesday, defeating Rep. Haley Stevens after one of the party’s most expensive nomination fights of 2026. The race drew nearly $65 million in outside spending, including more than $30 million from United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with AIPAC, backing Stevens. El-Sayed, a former public health official, now advances to a November matchup with Republican Mike Rogers in a contest widely seen as critical to deciding which party controls the Senate. The primary also highlighted Democratic splits over ideology and US support for Israel, an especially charged issue in Michigan, home to large Muslim and Arab American communities.