Abdul El-Sayed, an epidemiologist and former public health official aligned with the Democratic Party’s left flank, has won Michigan’s highly hostile Senate race, defeating his Republican rival, former Rep. Mike Rogers, NBC News projects.
\n\nEl-Sayed, 42, overcame a raft of Islamophobia fomented by President Donald Trump and others to become the first Muslim elected to the chamber.
\n\nHe also overcame a last-minute defection from Rep. Haley Stevens, a vanquished primary rival who reneged on her pledge to support him and endorsed Rogers after attending church with him Sunday.
\n\nEl-Sayed’s victory extends a long-running GOP drought in the state. A Republican has not won a Senate seat in Michigan since 1994. El-Sayed will succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters.
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\n\nThe clash between El-Sayed and Rogers, 63, rated among the nation’s most closely watched and aggressively fought, given El-Sayed’s alliance with progressive firebrands such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. El-Sayed’s criticism of the Israeli government, which he has accused of genocide, was also a consistent flashpoint in the race.
\n\nA group affiliated with the pro-Israel group AIPAC spent more than $30 million in an unsuccessful effort to lift Stevens over…
Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/sports