A PROGRESSIVE INSURGENT Democrat defeated the party establishment’s candidate to score a stunning win today in the primary race for the US Senate in a bitter competition that became a referendum on the changing face of the Democratic Party.

Abdul El-Sayed, a former public health official, narrowly beat veteran politician Haley Stevens by a single percentage point (less than 15,000 votes) after a bruising race in the US state of Michigan.

El-Sayed will now run in November’s midterm election for the US Senate against Republican Mike Rogers.

The rules of the game have changed. Because of you, Michigan. We cannot be bought.

Onto November. pic.twitter.com/KgjekKie4q

— Dr. Abdul El-Sayed (@AbdulElSayed) August 5, 2026

In a swing state that has twice narrowly backed Trump for president, that will be one of a handful of key battles deciding whether the Democrats can claw their way to controlling the Senate.

While Democrats are bullish that they can win the House of Representatives from Republicans in November, the Senate contest will be far harder.

To secure the Senate, and thereby the ability to shut down much of Trump’s agenda for the rest of his term, Democrats must keep Michigan while flipping four Republican-held seats around the country.

Mainstream Democratic Party leaders had backed Stevens, thinking she was more likely to appeal to a broader group of voters and give them the best chance to hold the Senate seat, which is being vacated by a retiring Democrat.

But El-Sayed, a former Wayne County health director backed by left-leaning party leaders Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, electrified voters and overcame Stevens’s vastly bigger campaign budget.

NEW: Abdul El-Sayed has won the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Michigan!

Together, we will keep this seat blue and send Abdul to the Senate. pic.twitter.com/wWoSihBcED

— Democrats (@TheDemocrats) August 5, 2026

Despite his left-wing stances, El-Sayed is not a member of the ascendant Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) wing of the party and rejects the socialist label as unhelpful.

He is, however, still taking lessons from party colleagues who are democratic socialists, especially New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whose social media prowess and focus on affordability helped propel him to victory last year.

But while left-wing Democrats have seen a wave of victories during this summer’s primaries – including in Colorado – it remains to be seen whether they can woo back disillusioned working-class voters who flocked to Trump in 2024.

For his part, El-Sayed has cast himself as a working-class fighter willing to confront corporations, party leaders and increasingly unpopular pro-Israel donors, including the lobby group American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

Stevens swiftly conceded to El-Sayed, saying she would “offer him my full support as we work to defeat Mike Rogers.”

Trump quickly shot off his own message, branding El-Sayed “a Communist loser who hates Jews and Israel,” and saying his win was “great news for the Republican Party”.

BREAKING: Trump declares Abdul El-Sayed Michigan Senate primary win 'great news' for Republicans pic.twitter.com/OrlfYzBWks

— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 5, 2026

“Now, the Dumocrats crazy policies will only get worse!” Trump added.

Volunteer energy

El-Sayed’s allies say the campaign’s volunteer energy proves progressives can build a statewide coalition without relying on Washington’s traditional donor network.

The campaign also laid bare bitter divides over the United States’ deep support for Israel.

Stevens defended continued military backing for the country and rejected accusations that Israel committed genocide in Gaza.

El-Sayed has called for an end to unconditional US aid, attacked the influence of the AIPAC lobby group, and said Israel should not exist specifically as a Jewish state.

AIPAC spending and outside advertising in a state with a large Arab American population and deep anger over the Gaza war, has made Michigan another national test of the pro-Israel lobby’s ability to shape Democratic primaries.

AIPAC’s affiliated super PAC, the United Democracy Project (UDP), spent over $31 million (€26.83 million) supporting Stevens in the Senate primary. This marked the largest single-race investment ever made by the organisation.

Abdul El-Sayed:

“AIPAC and Israel are not the same as Judaism and the Jewish people.

I love Judaism and I love the Jewish people.

The most dangerous thing is expanding antisemitism to include criticism of Israel.”

He is absolutely right! pic.twitter.com/5s3HH9bZvw

— Voice of Rabbis (@voiceofrabbis) July 30, 2026

The candidates traded increasingly personal attacks, with El-Sayed calling Stevens “the least capable candidate in America,” while she has accused him of blaming his problems on Jewish Americans.

Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, who has remained neutral, warned that the “brutality” and “ugliness” of the campaign could make it harder for Democrats to unite afterwards.

Michigan voted narrowly for Trump in 2024, even as Democrat Elissa Slotkin edged Rogers in that year’s Senate race, underscoring both the state’s competitiveness and the risks of a divided party.

“The Democratic establishment threw everything it had at Abdul El-Sayed,” Dan Pfeiffer, a senior aide in Barack Obama’s White House turned political analyst and podcast host, posted on X.

“If he wins, the reverberations will be felt far outside of Michigan.”

With reporting from Andrew Walsh