The 2026 midterms are a long way off, but candidates are still hitting the campaign trail in mid-Michigan. U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed will be in Clare at Four Leaf Brewing in Clare at 5 p.m. Thursday.
El-Sayed ran for governor in 2018 but lost to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in the Democratic primary.
He's one of three Democrats running for Michigan's open U.S. Senate seat, along with U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Rochester Hills), and state Senator Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak). Current U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township) is not seeking reelection and is retiring.
El-Sayed identifies as a progressive, who supports Medicare for All and campaign finance reforms.
"I'm the only candidate in this race who's never taken corporate PAC money, and I've never taken them in previous elections and never will,” he told WCMU.
He said if Democrats want to win elections, they need to speak to people's economic struggles.
"People are worried about affording their second bag of groceries. People are worried about being able to go see a doctor and not fall into medical debt,” he said. “People are worried about keeping the same job they worked yesterday, tomorrow, and tomorrow again. They're worried about the quality of the schools their kids go to."
On the economy, El-Sayed said he supports tariffs focused on protecting specific manufacturing industries. He criticized the Trump administration’s current slate of tariffs.
:You would be very clear with your trading partners about what industries you are tariffing and why,” he said on tariff policy.
“If NAFTA was cancer, then I think a smart tariff strategy can be chemotherapy. But any doctor will tell you that if you give all of your patients all the chemotherapy all at once, you kill your patient,” he said.
Former Michigan Congressman Mike Rogers is running on the Republican side. He's been endorsed by President Donald Trump. He lost a high-profile Senate race by less than a point in 2024.
