{"id":6739,"date":"2026-08-05T16:30:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T16:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=6739"},"modified":"2026-08-05T16:30:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T16:30:10","slug":"abdul-el-sayeds-win-proves-change-is-possible-for-democrats-his-next-fight-may-determine-their-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=6739","title":{"rendered":"Abdul El-Sayed\u2019s win proves change is possible for Democrats. His next fight may determine their future"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-14sl0e4\">\n<div class=\"dcr-17l77cs\">\n<figure id=\"5e7a9144-1eda-4fd7-8fb4-73c80fc33f53\" class=\"dcr-191xnya\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"a man speaks into a microphone\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/7e93302155efc87e5dfe65288f65fe65dc4452f7\/0_0_1920_1279\/master\/1920.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"309.7578125\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><span class=\"dcr-kogzpx\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-18mnkpm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1294qmb\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-4sl2vt\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1mfxiaj\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Abdul El-Sayed speaks to his supporters in Detroit, Michigan on 5 August 2026.<\/span> Photograph: Dieu-Nalio Chery\/EPA<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"5e7a9144-1eda-4fd7-8fb4-73c80fc33f53\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-qda0hp\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1e9iiy9\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Abdul El-Sayed speaks to his supporters in Detroit, Michigan on 5 August 2026.<\/span> Photograph: Dieu-Nalio Chery\/EPA<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-ql9l8l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6mja0y\">\n<div class=\"dcr-19hyiet\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1iguxsh\"><a href=\"\/tone\/analysis\" class=\"dcr-e5rynu\">Analysis<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h1 class=\"dcr-l0wuod\">Abdul El-Sayed\u2019s win proves change is possible for Democrats. His next fight may determine their future<\/h1>\n<div class=\"dcr-1ofjv3s\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1q5gfp0\"><a rel=\"author\" data-link-name=\"auto tag link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/profile\/joseph-gedeon\">Joseph Gedeon<\/a><span> and <\/span><a rel=\"author\" data-link-name=\"auto tag link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/profile\/rachel-leingang\">Rachel Leingang<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1xpojbf\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1vosmfz\">\n<p>If the progressive wins Michigan\u2019s general election, it could redefine the 2028 presidential contest. If he fails, the establishment will call him a cautionary tale<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/live\/2026\/aug\/05\/michigan-primary-race-democrats-midterms-senate-el-sayed-haley-stevens-donald-trump-republicans-us-politics-latest-news-updates\" data-link-name=\"in standfirst link\">US politics live \u2013 latest updates<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-x1al2c\">\n<div class=\"dcr-11gq2tx\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-1w2vkyc\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-ogvvui\">\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In the final stretch of the state\u2019s Democratic primary for US Senate, Abdul El-Sayed challenged voters at a small event in rural <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/michigan\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Michigan<\/a> to think about the message they could send the rest of the country when they cast their ballots.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"a4735374-5734-464b-9194-ff7f50e47188\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-1oq85qr\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-1 | 1\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1rx5ky9\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-uyoh2p\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/05\/michigan-senate-primary-results-abdul-el-sayed\" class=\"dcr-f35c0u\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-vvxpdt\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6z6e7\">\n<div class=\"dcr-zh9rih\">Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Senate primary in defining race for Democrats<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-oj13vq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-ef9nua\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cWho are we? Who do we want to be?\u201d El-Sayed said. \u201cDo we want a state that\u2019s defined by how much money corporations brought in to tell us what we couldn\u2019t have? Or do we want to be a state where we demonstrate to the rest of the country what\u2019s possible when you build a movement of, by, and for the people?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">On Tuesday, El-Sayed\u2019s vision surpassed its first hurdle: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/05\/michigan-senate-primary-results-abdul-el-sayed\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">he won the primary<\/a> over moderate congresswoman Haley Stevens, who was backed by the party\u2019s establishment, and tens of millions of dollars in outside spending.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">His rise, and victory, could serve as a revision to how the political establishment views swing-state politics \u2013 not requiring candidates to run from the center, but articulating how you will materially improve people\u2019s lives as the working and middle classes struggle with affordability and rising healthcare costs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">A contentious general election, in a battleground state, awaits.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El-Sayed led by 48.5% to 47.5% over Stevens when the race was called. The narrow margin, in addition to more than 60,000 votes for a candidate who dropped out altogether, suggest he will have to unite the party, and convince more independent and even right-leaning voters in a swing state, to beat Republican Mike Rogers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">But the race solidified a growing anti-establishment sentiment on the party\u2019s left, where activists and supporters have sought a proactive vision that doesn\u2019t rely on the pre-Trump status quo, apparent in a string of wins for insurgent candidates. There\u2019s a sense that systems were already broken before Trump\u2019s rise, and a return to those norms won\u2019t serve everyday Americans. They\u2019re looking for politicians who can call out their own party\u2019s orthodoxies, and challenge the big money that haunts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/us-politics\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">US politics<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Michigan voters found it in El-Sayed, who centered his campaign around universal healthcare<strong>,<\/strong> and wasn\u2019t shy about calling the war in Gaza a genocide.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIt doesn\u2019t limit us to just what we think is possible, but it changes what we think is possible<strong>,<\/strong>\u201d said David Sernick, a voter in Detroit who supported El-Sayed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El-Sayed first ran for office in 2018, losing to Gretchen Whitmer, now the governor of Michigan, in a Democratic primary. This time, he built a grassroots machine, barnstorming the state with in-person rallies while delivering clippable moments for social media feeds. His campaign knocked on more than 200,000 doors and made more than 1m phone calls, aided by leftwing groups such as the Working Families Party and Indivisible chapters. El-Sayed held more than 500 campaign events and visited 150 churches.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">People like Racquel Garcia, who voted for El-Sayed in Dearborn, Michigan, said his willingness to show up underscored their vote. El-Sayed worked as a public health official in Detroit and in Wayne county, and would show up at permit hearings and represent the people, she said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cEvery time we meet with the city of Detroit officials, we\u2019re like, \u2018we need you to be like him\u2019,\u201d said Garcia. \u201cYou\u2019re here to protect us, not to protect industry. So we\u2019ve been wanting him in office. We were happy that he\u2019s real.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Andy Levin, a former congressman from Michigan who lost to Stevens in 2022 after their districts were redrawn, said the moment rejected a \u201cstatic notion of electability\u201d that stems from a politics of anxiety and fear.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThey want authenticity, they want truth telling and they want brave policy, not just proposals but action, so they can breathe in their lives,\u201d Levin <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/democracynow.org\/post\/3msdjwn6mmu2h\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">told Democracy Now<\/a>. \u201cThis is a movement of Americans who are saying, enough of politics as usual.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Roy Harris, who voted in Detroit on Tuesday but wouldn\u2019t say for whom, detailed how it was time for a change. \u201cFirst-time homebuyers can\u2019t buy a house \u2013 $400,000, first time you going out, nobody can afford that,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m tired of paying $4 for gas, and I am looking for a change. And I hope the new regime coming in brings that to us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In Washington, El-Sayed\u2019s effort to win the race of US Senate in Michigan is critical for Democrats\u2019 ambitious hopes of retaking control of the upper chamber, and will be closely watched by all factions of the left as a bellwether for the party\u2019s future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Michigan voted for Trump, then Biden, and then Trump, in presidential elections. It is firmly a swing state. If El-Sayed, an unabashed progressive who frequently notes he has a \u201cfunny name\u201d, can win a statewide general election, it could remake the contours of the 2028 presidential contest. If he fails, the establishment and pundit class will call him, and his ideas, too extreme \u2013 a cautionary tale for play-it-safe politics.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In other parts of the country, moderates won their Democratic primaries, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/04\/marie-gluesenkamp-perez-washington-primary-election\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">blue-dog Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Perez<\/a> in a purple district in Washington state, who staved off a progressive challenge, and Wesley Bell, who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/04\/wesley-bell-missouri-democratic-primary-congress\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">saw off a challenge<\/a> from Cori Bush, a former representative.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Chris Rabb, a progressive who <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/20\/progressive-chris-rabb-wins-pennsylvania\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">won a contested primary for a US congressional seat in Pennsylvania<\/a>, recently noted the high bar people from his branch of the party face as they seek to challenge moderates.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cNobody asks \u2018centrist\u2019 Dems to explain their losses,\u201d Rabb wrote on X. \u201cThey lose purple districts every cycle &amp; Beltway pundits call it \u2018a tough map\u2019. Progressives lose one major race &amp; Dem operatives call us electoral pariahs. It\u2019s a specious double standard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Meanwhile, the attack lines from the right have already been drawn. Rogers <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MikeRogersForMI\/status\/2083648125273588199?s=20\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">posted<\/a> an AI-generated video of El-Sayed, depicting him as Odysseus among other prominent Democrats inside a Trojan horse, and saying \u201cdon\u2019t let communism into Michigan\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">A Republican has not won a US senate seat in Michigan since 1994. The Republican National Committee called El-Sayed \u201cMichigan\u2019s Mamdani\u201d and said the race \u201cpits common sense against crazy\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">El-Sayed himself remains confident.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In November, he is counting on turning out people who normally turn off from politics because they\u2019re cynical, or believe the system cannot change in a way that would make their lives better.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThe goal now is not to dunk on anybody, the goal now is to come together so we can all collectively dunk on Mike Rogers,\u201d El-Sayed said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-swayiu\"><span class=\"dcr-1xhbmzr\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-2c03t5\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-p7nd18\">\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-midterm-elections-2026\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US midterm elections 2026<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/democrats\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Democrats<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/michigan\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Michigan<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tone\/analysis\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">analysis<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-313bdz\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Abdul%20El-Sayed%E2%80%99s%20win%20proves%20change%20is%20possible%20for%20Democrats.%20His%20next%20fight%20may%20determine%20their%20future&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/aug\/05\/abdul-el-sayed-michigan-democrats?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-ncybeu\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-19bkree\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Faug%2F05%2Fabdul-el-sayed-michigan-democrats&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/aug\/05\/abdul-el-sayed-michigan-democrats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-1c41onw\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1kq7f60\"><span class=\"dcr-1ryr20k\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Abdul El-Sayed speaks to his supporters in Detroit, Michigan on 5 August 2026. Photograph: Dieu-Nalio Chery\/EPA View image<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":6741,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6739","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6739"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6739\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6742,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6739\/revisions\/6742"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}