El-Sayed: Michigan Is Capital of Arab America

WASHINGTON — Days after making history as the first Muslim elected to the United States Senate, Michigan Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed on Friday declared his home state the “capital of Arab America,” highlighting the size and influence of its Arab American community during remarks near the nation’s capital.

Speaking at the CONNECT Arab America: Empowerment Summit at the Westfields Marriott Washington Dulles in Chantilly, Virginia, the progressive Democrat told attendees: “I’m honored to be the next United States Senator from the great state of Michigan. I know we’re here in D.C., which of course is the capital of the United States of America, but Michigan is the capital of Arab America.

The comments came just days after El-Sayed, 42, defeated Republican former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers in the Nov. 3 midterm election to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters.

Unofficial results showed El-Sayed winning with about 52.5 percent of the vote to Rogers’ 45.5 percent, a roughly seven-point margin in a race that drew national attention and heavy spending.

El-Sayed, the son of Egyptian immigrants who was born and raised in the Detroit metropolitan area, will become the first Muslim to serve in the U.S. Senate when he is sworn in in January.

A physician and epidemiologist by training, he previously served as executive director of the Detroit Health Department and director of the Wayne County Department of Health, Human and Veterans Services. He has never held elected office before.

Michigan is home to one of the largest Arab American populations in the country. The Arab American Institute estimates the community at more than 390,000 people, with a heavy concentration in Metro Detroit and especially Dearborn, a suburb long regarded as a cultural and political hub for Arab Americans in the United States. Dearborn and surrounding communities delivered overwhelming support for El-Sayed, who won the city by a wide margin amid record turnout.

The senator-elect’s victory followed a bruising campaign marked by Islamophobic attacks from President Donald Trump and others, who repeatedly targeted his name, faith and progressive positions, including criticism of U.S. military aid to Israel and support for Medicare for All. El-Sayed also survived a hard-fought Democratic primary against establishment-backed Rep. Haley Stevens. In his victory speech, he emphasized themes of belonging and rejection of division, telling supporters the election showed America is “big enough” for people like him.

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By pointing to Michigan’s Arab American community so soon after his election, El-Sayed underscored both the demographic reality of his state and the political significance of a constituency that has grown more visible and organized in recent cycles. His remarks at the national Arab American gathering framed the state’s role not only as a political battleground but as a center of cultural and community life for Arab Americans nationwide.

El-Sayed is expected to take office on Jan. 3.