El-Sayed Wins Support of Half of Jewish Voters in Michigan Election

Democratic Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed received support from half of Jewish voters in Michigan during the state’s recent midterm election, according to a poll funded by an independent Jewish organization.

The survey found that El-Sayed secured 50 percent of the Jewish vote in Michigan, while his Republican rival, Mike Rogers, received 43 percent.

El-Sayed, known for his strong criticism of Israel, faced considerable scrutiny over his relationship with Jewish voters throughout the election campaign. His outspoken stance against Israel sparked widespread debate.

A comment made by El-Sayed following a terrorist attack at a synagogue in Michigan also drew criticism. After the attack, he said, “Hurt people hurt people.” He later apologized for the remark.

These controversies raised questions ahead of the election about whether Jewish voters, who have historically supported Democrats by significant margins, would back El-Sayed.

The poll was conducted by Mercury Public Affairs between October 25 and November 10, surveying 883 Jewish voters. It had a margin of error of 3.9 percentage points.

According to the results, El-Sayed received seven percentage points more support than Rogers among Jewish voters statewide.

However, the same poll showed that El-Sayed trailed Michigan’s newly elected Democratic governor, Jocelyn Benson, among Jewish voters. Benson received 69 percent of their support.

The results were different in Oakland County, which has a large Jewish population and was also the location of the synagogue attack. There, Rogers received 52 percent of the Jewish vote, compared with 39 percent for El-Sayed.

In Michigan’s Senate election, Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed won with 2,520,883 votes, or 52.5 percent of the total. His closest rival, Republican Mike Rogers, received 2,181,108 votes, or 45.5 percent.

Source: The Times of Israel