Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has become the first Muslim elected to the United States Senate following his projected victory in Michigan’s midterm election, describing his emergence as a moment of pride and gratitude.
The 42-year-old defeated former Republican Representative Mike Rogers in Tuesday’s election to win the seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Gary Peters.
Reacting to the projected victory, El-Sayed told supporters that he was honoured to represent Michigan in the upper chamber of the US Congress.
Speaking at an election night gathering in a video shared by Fox News, he said, “My name is Abdulrahman Mohamed Sayed, and I am so proud and honoured to stand here as your senator-elect from the great state of Michigan.”
He recalled that during the campaign, he frequently used the Islamic expression “Inshallah”, meaning “God willing”, whenever discussing the outcome of the election.
“Up until right about now, you might have noticed I always say Inshallah or God willing whenever the outcome of this race was mentioned,” he said.
He also invoked “Alhamdulillah”, an Arabic expression meaning “praise be to God”, to express gratitude for the outcome.
According to Anadolu Agency, El-Sayed’s victory marks a major milestone for Muslim representation in American politics, with the former public health official set to assume office when the new Congress convenes in January.
His emergence followed a keenly contested Democratic primary in August, where he defeated Representative Haley Stevens to secure the party’s nomination.
His campaign attracted endorsements from prominent progressive politicians, including Senator Bernie Sanders, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib.
On the campaign trail, El-Sayed emphasised healthcare accessibility, housing affordability and economic opportunities for working families.
He advocated Medicare for All, a proposal to expand publicly funded healthcare, while promising to challenge the influence of wealthy donors in American politics.
His foreign policy positions, particularly his criticism of US military assistance to Israel, also featured prominently in the contest.
El-Sayed described Israel’s military operations in Gaza as genocide and called on Washington to end unconditional military support for the country.
His stance exposed divisions within the Democratic Party, with Stevens endorsing Republican candidate Rogers just two days before the general election after losing the primary.
Stevens cited concerns about El-Sayed’s campaign rhetoric and political associations in explaining her decision, which drew criticism from sections of the Democratic Party.
El-Sayed, however, dismissed allegations associating him with extremism, arguing that such attacks were intended to divert attention from the economic difficulties confronting American families.
Born in Rochester Hills, Michigan, to Egyptian immigrant parents, El-Sayed has a background in medicine and public health.
He graduated from the University of Michigan in 2007 and subsequently obtained a doctorate in public health from the University of Oxford in 2011 as a Rhodes Scholar.
He earned his medical degree from Columbia University in 2014.
His public service career began to attract national attention in 2015 when he was appointed health director for Detroit. In that capacity, he supervised efforts to rebuild the city's public health infrastructure following its financial crisis, serving until 2017.
He subsequently contested the Michigan governorship in 2018 but lost the Democratic primary to Gretchen Whitmer.
From 2023 to 2025, he served as director of the Wayne County Department of Health, Human and Veterans Services.
El-Sayed’s election adds a new chapter to the growing participation of Muslim Americans in the country’s political institutions.
Muslim Americans have previously secured seats in the House of Representatives, but his victory represents the first time a Muslim has been elected to the Senate.
Keith Ellison made history in 2006 as the first Muslim elected to Congress, while Tlaib and Ilhan Omar became the first Muslim women elected to the House in 2018.
With his January inauguration, El-Sayed will become the first Muslim to serve in the US Senate, breaking a longstanding barrier in the country's political representation.
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