Politics of fear failed to stop El-Sayed's historic US Senate win

Abdul El-Sayed won a historic US Senate seat in Tuesday’s midterm despite a campaign critics described as overtly Islamophobic. In the run-up, President Donald Trump branded him a jihadist, compared him to the Sept. 11 hijackers, and urged suspicion of his ties to terrorism, while Republican opponent Mike Rogers questioned El-Sayed’s loyalty and ran attacks that warned voters he would bring sharia law to Michigan. Residents in and around Dearborn—home to a large Arab American community—said the rhetoric raised safety concerns. El-Sayed, 42, a Michigan-born Egyptian American and former Detroit health director, framed his victory as a rebuke to hate, winning with a progressive platform focused on healthcare and living costs.