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Michigan Senate primary showdown
Michigan Democrats are voting in a fiercely contested Senate primary that pits establishment-backed Rep. Haley Stevens against progressive former public health official Abdul El-Sayed, with the winner set to face Republican Mike Rogers in the general election.
“nearly three years of war, mass killings and destruction in Palestine and Lebanon”
In Dearborn, Michigan, Suehaila Amen said the Arab American community is suffering after “nearly three years of war, mass killings and destruction in Palestine and Lebanon,” and she framed El-Sayed’s bid as a push to end government support for Israel.
At a Friday night campaign rally for El-Sayed in Dearborn, Abbas Alawieh said the Bint Jebail Cultural Center was hosting the event because “Bint Jbail is actively experiencing an ethnic cleansing by the Israeli military.”
El-Sayed, a doctor and public health advocate running on a pledge to invest in local communities instead of foreign wars, has also been vocal in denouncing Israel’s war on Gaza as a genocide, while Stevens has accused El-Sayed of disproportionately focusing on foreign policy.
The race is also being shaped by outside spending tied to AIPAC, with Amen saying El-Sayed’s potential win would be “historic” if he can overcome what she described as AIPAC’s influence.
AIPAC money and campaign fights
The Michigan primary has become a national test case for the influence of the Democratic establishment versus the party’s populist wing, after Federal Election Commission (FEC) data showed more than $60 million in outside spending flooded the race.
The United Democracy Project (UDP), described as a super PAC affiliated with AIPAC, emerged as the largest spender, contributing over $30 million to support Stevens, while El-Sayed’s campaign reported raising $14.5 million through his own campaign.
In a televised debate, Stevens said, “I want to see long-term peace. I want to see a two-state solution,” as she defended her record and her alignment with Democratic leaders backing her.
El-Sayed, speaking during a campaign stop in Ferndale, argued that “AIPAC will spend huge amounts of money if you’re uppity like me and you speak out of turn to beat you,” linking the spending to the fight over electability and foreign policy.
The Detroit News reported Stevens’ late Thursday night post on X accused El-Sayed of wanting to “blame all of your problems on Jewish Americans,” while El-Sayed responded at a Saturday campaign event in Detroit that “It’s sad to see a campaign flailing at the very end after having burnt $70 million in money.”
What’s at stake Tuesday
Beyond Michigan, the contest is framed as a bellwether for the Democratic Party’s future, with the winner expected to shape the party’s direction ahead of November’s midterm elections.
“almost a must-win for Democrats if they want to take control of Congress's upper chamber”
AP reported that El-Sayed projected confidence about Tuesday’s result and said, “We got 13 weeks left to work,” while Stevens continued to frame herself as the only candidate who could defeat Rogers.
The BBC said the open Senate seat is “almost a must-win for Democrats if they want to take control of Congress’s upper chamber,” and it noted that the last time a Republican was elected to this senate seat was in 1994.
In Grand Rapids, CBS News reported Stevens told Ed O’Keefe that “Every single poll shows I'm the best one to go beat Mike Rogers,” while she also asserted that El-Sayed “will not recognize Israel's right to exist as a state.”
With the primary outcome tied to whether Democrats can unite a coalition, NPR described the race as colliding party fights over establishment versus insurgent and progressive versus more moderate politics, and it quoted El-Sayed saying, “So we're constantly hedging and pulling punches so we say not much of anything at all.”
