The Japan Times - Leftist Democrat urges unity after victory in Michigan

"The things that unite us are so much bigger than the things that divide us," El-Sayed told supporters, promising to build a movement broad enough to include voters who had backed either Democrat Kamala Harris or Republican Donald Trump in 2024.

"You know, in the words of Muhammad Ali, we shook up the world," he said of his win over four-term congresswoman Haley Stevens after a bitter and expensive primary that became a national test of the Democratic Party's left wing.

The former public health official overcame tens of millions of dollars in outside spending supporting Stevens, including a record intervention by groups aligned with the influential pro-Israel lobby AIPAC.

He will face former Republican congressman Mike Rogers in November for a seat considered essential to Democratic hopes of regaining the Senate, where the party must defend Michigan while gaining four Republican-held seats.

The midwestern state backed Trump in the 2024 presidential election, even as Democrat Elissa Slotkin narrowly defeated Rogers for the other Senate seat.

- 'Into the mud' -

El-Sayed said Republicans would seek to portray him as too radical for the battleground state and use his Muslim identity against him.

"They understand that the only way that they think they can win is to drag us into the mud," he said.

But he argued that voters who disagreed on politics could unite around affordability, health care and opposition to corporate influence.

"My name is not raising your gas prices. My name is not taking us to war. My name is not the reason you can't afford your groceries," he said.

El-Sayed then turned his fire on Rogers, calling him a "coward," challenging him to five debates and accusing him of loyalty to Trump and corporate donors.

"If you want a senator who's going to lick some boots, fine, go vote for Mike Rogers," he said. "But if you want a senator who's going to stand up to Donald Trump, then you've got your option right here."

El-Sayed was backed by progressive leaders including Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren, as well as the United Auto Workers union.

His platform includes health care for all, higher taxes on billionaires, ending unconditional US military aid to Israel and reducing the role of corporate money in elections.

- 'Rigorous campaign' -

Stevens had the support of Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who argued that her moderate record and experience winning a suburban congressional seat made her the safer general-election choice.

She conceded Wednesday and pledged to support El-Sayed against Rogers.

"This was a thorough and rigorous campaign that brought out the full span of views within the Democratic Party -- and that is why we have primaries," Stevens said.

The primary was shaped heavily by divisions over Israel.

El-Sayed has accused Israel of genocide in Gaza and demanded an end to US military aid. Stevens defended the US-Israel relationship and benefited from more than $30 million in spending by AIPAC's political arm.

His win gives progressives their biggest success yet in a year of anti-establishment Democratic wins.

In his victory remarks, El-Sayed sought to reassure Jewish voters after a campaign marked by accusations of antisemitism and Islamophobia.

Republicans welcomed his nomination, believing his positions on Israel, immigration and health care could make him vulnerable in November.

Trump called the result "great news for the Republican Party," while Michigan Republicans said they would portray El-Sayed as far outside the state's political mainstream.

K.Yamaguchi--JT