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US Politics

NBC: Democrat El-Sayed leads in key Michigan county as Senate polls close

He faces Republican Mike Rogers for the seat of retiring Sen. Gary Peters, and the race could help decide control of the Senate.

7 news outlets reported this
Liberal3 outletsEl-Sayed's Senate bid, the Stevens rift, attacksCenter1 outletWho El-Sayed is, as the race draws attentionConservative3 outletsA tight race, Democratic defections and Rogers's closing pitch
Published 3 min read
Overview

Michigan voters chose a US senator on Tuesday, Nov. 3, in a race between Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and Republican Mike Rogers. Polls closed at 8 p.m. local time. NBC News showed El-Sayed ahead in a key Michigan county as voting ended.

Al Jazeera says a close race may not be called until Wednesday. The two are competing for the seat of retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters. El-Sayed, a former head of Detroit's health department, could become the first Muslim in the .

Rogers is a former congressman endorsed by President Trump. A final New York Times/Siena poll put El-Sayed 11 points ahead. According to Al Jazeera, Democrats need to gain four seats to win back the Senate.

On Sunday, Rep. Haley Stevens, a Democrat whom El-Sayed narrowly beat in the August primary, endorsed Rogers. Trump urged a vote for Rogers and, according to Al Jazeera, has called El-Sayed a "jihadist." Trump told Fox News in an interview that American yearly payments to Israel ought to end when 2026 does.

The said it would place election monitors in all 50 states.

Key figures
  • 11 points El-Sayed's lead over Rogers in the final New York Times/Siena poll — Al Jazeera English
  • four seats Democrats need to gain to take back the Senate — Al Jazeera English
  • more than $30m spent by AIPAC backing Stevens against El-Sayed in the primary — Al Jazeera English
  • $9m channeled by Stevens's large donors into a Republican group backing Rogers, per The New York Times — Al Jazeera English
  • $4B US aid to Israel Trump says will stop at the end of the year — NBC News

Three sides of the story

Liberal3 outlets

El-Sayed's Senate bid, the Stevens rift, attacks

NBC News posts "Key Michigan county shows El-Sayed lead as polls close," a video item in a rundown of election-night segments that also lists projections in Florida, North Carolina and Georgia. Al Jazeera English opens with a race that could make El-Sayed the first Muslim in the Senate and cites the final New York Times/Siena poll showing him 11 points ahead. It quotes Schumer saying El-Sayed "is going to win tonight."

It reports a weeks-long row between El-Sayed and Stevens over his opposition to US support for Israel, which ended with her endorsing Rogers on Sunday. A section on "Islamophobic attacks" describes Trump calling El-Sayed a "jihadist" and repeating what it calls an unfounded Muslim Brotherhood claim. It also reports Trump's remarks on ending aid to Israel.

The New York Times' short "What to Watch in Michigan" says Republicans see the seat as a key one to flip and promises a breakdown of the race by reporter Christine Zhang.

Center1 outlet

Who El-Sayed is, as the race draws attention

NewsNation's piece, "Who is Abdul El-Sayed?", says the Michigan Senate hopeful is drawing national focus. It adds that he typically describes himself as a progressive Democrat and not as a socialist.

Conservative3 outlets

A tight race, Democratic defections and Rogers's closing pitch

The Washington Free Beacon's "Rogers and El-Sayed Make Closing Pitches in Tight Senate Race" follows both men's last rallies on Monday night. Rogers stresses support among Democrats and independents and praises Stevens's "courage." The outlet reports that several Jewish and black Democrats at his rally said they were casting a first Republican vote, and says their reasons were El-Sayed's "radicalism" and his reluctance to condemn terrorism and antisemitism.

The Washington Times describes a "white-knuckle contest" in which the two candidates are putting different strategies for winning a to the test. Fox News talks to voters, including a former Democrat who backed Rogers and a lifelong Republican who chose El-Sayed despite disagreeing with him on many policies. It notes Rogers has distanced himself from Trump on the Iran war and the war with Canada.

A second Fox piece reports that ex-Rep. Justin Amash, who voted for neither man, said El-Sayed would be "far less dangerous in practice than Rogers."

All sources: 8 articles from 7 outlets

Liberal (3)

Center (1)

Conservative (4)

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