Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed took the stage in Michigan to declare victory. CBS News has not projected a winner in the race, which remains close, although Democrats are considered the likely winners. “Michigan, we did it!” El Sayed said. He said he is “very proud and honored” to be your senator-elect. If he wins against Republican Mike Rogers, El-Sayed will be the first Muslim-American elected to the U.S. Senate. “You took a chance on the most unlikely candidate, so thank you,” he said. “This is all yours.” He thanked voters for inviting him into their churches, synagogues and homes. “Thank you for your trust, your faith and your kindness,” he said. “I’ll take it all and hope to regain the kind of leadership that more than deserves it.” El-Sayed said his opponents were not just targeting and attacking him, “they were targeting and attacking you.” “They want an America that is too small for some of us. We know that America is big enough for all of us,” he said. It was a bitter race. El-Sayed’s vehement criticism of the Israeli government sparked strong pushback from Republicans and some moderate Democrats in both the primary and general elections, and President Trump frequently made inflammatory comments about El-Sayed, calling him “Mohammad” and saying he should be forced to go through a metal detector. He pointed out that bitterness during his speech early Wednesday. “So Mike, enjoy your retirement!” El-Sayed said, telling him to enjoy his yachts. “You chose hate and Michigan chose hope,” he said. “I hope we never have to see people like you in the state again.” “JD, habibi, there is a delicious irony in the fact that you are constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January,” he said, before nodding to Vice President JD Vance’s Ohio heritage. “Then you know what that means: Wolverine one, Buckeye zero!” “Donald, look, I know you’ve had problems with my name,” he said. “So after JD swears me in in January, you can go ahead and call me a senator.” “To the super PACs and special interests that tried to beat us, we’re going after their political system,” he said. “To AIPAC, who spent $42 million against us, thank you for giving me the opportunity to beat you twice.”
