Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan Democratic Senate primary as voters pivot to the left

Abdul El-Sayed, left, and Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., are the Democratic Senate candidates from Michigan.Getty ImagesAbdul El-Sayed, the progressive, anti-establishment Democrat running for Senate in Michigan, defeated Rep. Haley Stevens in one of the most closely watched and impactful primary elections of the 2026 midterms. El-Sayed beat Stevens by 1 percentage point as The Associated Press called the race Wednesday morning with 99% of votes counted. El-Sayed had captured 48.5% of the votes to Stevens' 47.5%. Mallory McMorrow, who had suspended her campaign a month before the primary, received 4% of the votes.The results set up El-Sayed to face former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers in the general election this November.El-Sayed, a former public health official, and Stevens, a more moderate Democrat, were vying for the seat Democratic Sen. Gary Peters will vacate at the end of this Congress. The result could help decide control of the Senate for the next Congress and influence the direction of the Democratic Party in the coming years.El-Sayed's win is a boon for the left flank of the Democratic Party, which has recently scored upsets in New York and Colorado. He had notched endorseme...