Abdul El-Sayed won the Michigan Senate primary election results over Rep. Haley Stevens, NBC News projects, after a close race that settled the Democratic side of the state's Senate contest. The result makes him the Democratic nominee for November.
El-Sayed overcame nearly $65 million in outside money. At a debate last week in Detroit, he said, “If you need a $60 million crutch, you probably can’t be elected on your own terms.”
Detroit debate line
El-Sayed's campaign leaned on Medicare for All, money in politics and criticism of Stevens for supporting aid to Israel. He also received an endorsement from the United Auto Workers, while Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez campaigned for him in Michigan.
Stevens, a four-term congresswoman, had help from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who endorsed her last month, and from Sen. Gary Peters, who endorsed her in the primary. El-Sayed's victory came despite that backing and despite the scale of the spending against him.
National Republicans and El-Sayed
National Republicans had signaled they viewed El-Sayed as the easier general-election opponent and produced a digital ad emphasizing his progressive credentials and Bernie Sanders endorsement. The same campaign that helped define him for primary voters now becomes part of the November matchup against former Rep. Mike Rogers, who claimed the Republican nomination without opposition on Tuesday.
The Senate race is expected to be one of the most competitive in the country and could help decide which party controls the chamber. Donald Trump won Michigan in 2016 and 2024, while Joe Biden won the state in 2020, a recent record that has kept Michigan at the center of the fight for the seat.
Mike Rogers in November
El-Sayed will face Mike Rogers in November. The contest now shifts from a primary defined by spending and ideological contrast to a general election that will test whether Michigan voters keep the seat in Democratic hands after Sen. Gary Peters decided against seeking a third term.
