Abdul El-Sayed held a narrow lead over Haley Stevens in Michigan's Democratic Senate primary on Tuesday night, with the race too close to call as hundreds of supporters gathered at his Detroit watch party. The winner will face Republican Mike Rogers, who ran unopposed, in the November midterm elections.
The contest pitted the former public health official against the incumbent congresswoman in a race defined by contrasting financial backing. Stevens received tens of millions of dollars from PACs including AIPAC, while El-Sayed relied solely on grassroots donations and secured endorsements from Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. El-Sayed, who would be the first Muslim senator if elected, has challenged perceptions of Michigan as a moderate state, noting its two votes for Donald Trump.
The Justice Department deployed election monitors to Detroit, Hamtramck, Lansing, and East Lansing. Elsewhere, Wesley Bell defeated Cori Bush in Missouri and Cindy Holscher won the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in Kansas.