Abdul El-Sayed, a left-wing Democrat, won the Michigan Senate race against Republican Mike Rogers, according to the BBC. The report says he is the first Muslim senator in US history.
El-Sayed, a former public health administrator, campaigned on universal health care and a wealth tax on billionaires. The BBC reports that the race included attacks on him, including Rogers's campaign tying him to terrorism, which the report calls baseless. Rogers, who was backed by President Donald Trump, called El-Sayed a communist and criticized his stance on Israel and his Muslim faith.
El-Sayed described Israel's actions in Gaza as genocide and called for an end to US aid to the country. The report notes that Michigan has the second largest Arab-American population in the US. His Democratic primary rival, Haley Stevens, a staunch supporter of Israel, endorsed Rogers days before the election. Democratic leadership called the move "a despicable betrayal," according to the report.
In his victory speech, El-Sayed thanked supporters for taking a chance on "the unlikeliest of candidates." He said his opponents "went all in on one of the ugliest campaigns we've seen in a long time," and accused them of attacking him "because of my name and my faith."
The BBC reports that Muslim voters in the crowd described the win as a milestone. One supporter, Roula Allouch, said she was proud of the campaign and of El-Sayed's family for their perseverance.