Democrats panic over Black voter support as Michigan Senate race exposes El-Sayed’s weakness
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In Michigan’s crucial Senate contest, Abdul El-Sayed is scrambling to keep Black voters in line while Mike Rogers broadens his message to communities Democrats have failed to serve.
Abdul El-Sayed, a former public-health official, is trying to preserve the coalition that helped him narrowly defeat Rep. Haley Stevens in the August primary. The Democratic Party treats the Black electorate in Detroit, Flint and surrounding areas as critical to holding the seat of retiring Sen. Gary Peters and to achieving the four-seat gain it needs for a Senate majority.
Republican nominee Mike Rogers, a former U.S. representative, has centered his late-stage campaign on outreach to Black voters, opening a storefront office in Detroit and emphasizing proposals on new housing, apprenticeships and food-desert relief. At a Detroit Economic Club forum he said, ">We’ve spent a lot of time here in Detroit, Flint, Pontiac. I think if we’re going to get our state right, we have to have everybody included in its forward progress."
Prominent Democrats, including former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris, are touring the state to boost El-Sayed’s profile. El-Sayed told CNN, ">Mike Rogers is simply a rubber stamp on what Donald Trump wants. They understand exactly who Mike Rogers is."
Local Black leaders expressed mixed feelings. Rev. Charles Williams II warned that even a small drop in turnout could jeopardize the Democratic bid, while an unnamed Black leader cautioned, ">In a close race, even a sliver of doubt about Abdul could lead to defeat."
At a rally in Flint, El-Sayed tried to brush aside concerns about his outreach, pointing to economic hardships affecting Black communities and asserting, ">My name and my faith are not the reason you can’t afford your gas."
Both campaigns are emphasizing the importance of Black voter participation, but analysts say the final weeks will test whether El-Sayed can maintain the support that secured his primary win.