DETROIT — Abdul El-Sayed won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, defeating Rep. Haley Stevens by less than one percentage point. The Associated Press called the race Wednesday morning, and Stevens quickly endorsed El-Sayed, saying she would offer her full support.
State Sen. Mallory McMorrow, who exited the race in July, also endorsed El-Sayed as votes were still being tallied. McMorrow acknowledged the primary was "brutal" but emphasized the importance of a unified party heading into the November general election.
The primary saw $62 million poured into the state to boost Stevens' campaign. About half — approximately $31 million — came from AIPAC, giving Stevens and her allies a nine-to-one spending advantage over El-Sayed.
El-Sayed now faces Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers in the general election. Polling shows Rogers holding a slight but consistent lead over El-Sayed, just outside the margin of error, in the closely watched race.
Some centrist Democrats have expressed concern that El-Sayed's nomination increases the party's risk of losing the seat in November.
Jon Chait, a columnist for The Atlantic, questioned the strategic thinking of El-Sayed's supporters. "Is there a single El-Sayed supporter with enough self-awareness to admit they're willing to accept a higher risk of defeat to elect a left-wing candidate?" Chait asked on X over the weekend.
Chait's criticism did not address the steep spending disparity El-Sayed overcame to win the nomination.
By Wednesday morning, Chait reframed the Michigan race as a critical battle in what he called an "existential war for liberalism," criticizing progressive figures including streamer Hasan Piker, democratic socialism and James Carville.
In The Atlantic, Chait argued the left minimizes establishment successes while attributing every failure to mainstream Democrats — a dynamic, he wrote, in which mainstream liberals focus on defeating Republicans while the left targets the mainstream.
Matt Yglesias, a prominent blogger, also weighed in critically on El-Sayed's victory.
Stevens' and McMorrow's endorsements signal a push for party unity. Michigan Democrats face the task of consolidating support across the party's factions before November.
