USAupdated 59m ago3 min read
Archive photo · 3 May 2023Democrats Regain Control of Both Houses as Kisha Lance Bottoms Wins Georgia Governorship
“the corporate media has said far less about rampant Islamophobia”
“His election drew particular attention because Michigan has substantial Arab American, Muslim, and Jewish populations.”
Photo: Harrison Keely, CC BY 4.0 · Cropped for layout
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Democrats capture control of both chambers of Congress in the 2026 midterms. Arab American and Palestinian-American candidates win U.S. Senate and state seats.
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Historic Midterm Outcomes
The 2026 U.S. midterm elections produced “unprecedented outcomes,” including the election of “the first Muslim to the Senate” and “the first Black woman to serve as governor of a state,” while the Democratic Party “regaining control of both houses of Congress.” Kisha Lance Bottoms won Georgia’s governorship as “the first Black woman elected governor in the United States,” defeating Republican Rick Jackson, and the BBC said she previously served as mayor of Atlanta from 2018 to 2022. Abdulrahman Muhammad Al-Sayed, known as Abdul (Abdul) Al-Sayed, won Michigan’s Senate seat as “the first Muslim elected to the Senate,” defeating Republican Mike Rogers, and the BBC described him as an American physician of Egyptian descent.
Byron Donalds won Florida’s governorship as “the first Black person elected to the post in the state,” and the BBC said he would succeed Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, who reached term limits. Chris Pappas won New Hampshire’s Senate seat as “the first openly gay man elected to the Senate,” defeating Republican John Sununu, and the BBC said Pappas criticized President Trump and businessman Elon Musk during his victory celebration.
Arab and Muslim Political Gains
Arab-American and Muslim candidates with roots across the Arab world won seats in the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections, and L'Orient Today said Lebanese-born Abbas Alawieh also won a seat in the Michigan Senate.
Abdul El-Sayed’s Senate victory in Michigan drew celebration in Dearborn, where ClickOnDetroit reported that Mayor Abdullah Hammoud said 45,464 residents voted, the highest turnout in the city’s history.
Osama Siblani, the publisher of the Arab American News, told ClickOnDetroit that “I went to vote on Tuesday, and for the first time, I walked in, people recognized who I was.”
Maya Berry of the Arab American Institute told ClickOnDetroit that “roughly 400,000 Arab American voters” were in Michigan, with a large concentration in Metro Detroit, and she said the constituency is “available for smart candidates.”
The Detroit Free Press also described Arab American and Muslim voters mobilizing in east Dearborn, where attorney Abed Hammoud said “The energy is different,” and it reported longer-than-usual lines at Salina Intermediate School and McDonald Elementary School on Nov. 3.
Campaign Attacks and What’s Next
CNN Arabic framed the 2026 midterm results as a “historic Democratic victory” and a “historic setback” for the Trump administration’s “lame-duck” period, while it said the broad outlines were already clear as results continued to come in.
In Michigan, the Media Line said Democrats captured Congress and that Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican Mike Rogers to become “the first Muslim elected to the US Senate,” with the former Detroit health director supporting restricting US military assistance to Israel.
The Media Line also said the campaign exposed divisions over Israel within the Democratic Party, including after Rep. Haley Stevens, whom El-Sayed defeated in the primary, endorsed Rogers.
Common Dreams reported that young Arab Americans in Michigan said Islamophobia made them feel unsafe, and it quoted Aasiya Yaasiin saying, “It’s like going back in time.”
Common Dreams also quoted Dylan Williams of the Center for International Policy saying, “Mike Rogers has run a bigoted, openly Islamophobic campaign that endangers millions of our fellow Americans,” as it discussed how the election rhetoric affected Arab Americans and Muslims.
