INSHALLAH?!

MAGA Melts Down as Progressive Dem Surges in Crucial Senate Race

The Michigan primary race was the most expensive in Democratic history.

MAGA’s rage over “radical” Democrats went into overdrive on Wednesday after a little-known progressive took the lead in a Senate primary that could help swing the balance of power in Congress this November.

In the Midwest battleground of Michigan, epidemiologist and former public health official Abdul El-Sayed was on track to beat establishment-backed Rep. Haley Stevens in a hard-fought Democratic primary contest.

El-Sayed would be America’s first Muslim senator if he goes on to win in the midterms.

But even before the result was called in Michigan, MAGA acolytes were having a meltdown at the prospect of an El-Sayed victory - particularly after he unapologetically used the phrase “inshallah”—“God willing” in Arabic—in his election-night speech.

“Abdul El-Sayed winning a Senate seat would be as dangerous as Mamdani winning as Mayor in New York. Does no one in America know what Islam stands for?” lamented commentator Joey Mannarino.

“They want Sharia law, they hate Jews, they hate Christians, they hate capitalism, they hate America!” Texas Sen. Ted Cruz fumed in a wild rant on Fox News.

“Disgusting,” said Laura Loomer, the far-right influencer who is a close ally of President Donald Trump.

“I can’t imagine having a builder in the White House and we’re going to elect people who want to tear it all down,” added former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway, describing the 41-year-old’s rise as the “completion of the Bernie Sanders revolution.”

The Michigan race was one of the most closely watched battles of the 2026 midterm election cycle—and the most expensive Democratic primary contest ever.

More than $60 million of outside spending had poured into the Senate contest, most of which came from the Israel lobby in a bid to ensure Stevens defeated El-Sayed, a Bernie Sanders-endorsed candidate who campaigned on Medicare for All, cracking down on corporate influence in politics, and ending military aid to Israel. El-Sayed was born in Michigan to Egyptian immigrant parents.

“If we come through this—when we come through this—inshallah,” a grinning El-Sayed said in his election night speech, promising to take the battle to the Republicans at the midterms.

Whoever wins will face off in November against Trump-endorsed candidate Mike Rogers, who the president has described as “one of the best candidates we have anywhere.”

“He’s smart. He’s tough. He’s fair,” Trump said at a rally in Michigan last month.

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While the Democrats’ left flank has had major victories in deep-blue cities like New York, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, an El-Sayed victory will be interpreted as evidence that progressive candidates can win competitive statewide primaries in battleground states, even against better-funded establishment rivals.

Republicans are also expected to seize on El-Sayed’s embrace of left-wing influencer Hasan Piker, who remains a lightning rod over a 2019 remark that “America deserved 911″. (Piker says the comment was selectively clipped from a wider discussion criticizing U.S foreign policy.)

Democrats remain concerned about progressive candidates failing to win over swing voters in general elections. During her campaign, Stevens positioned herself as the best candidate to beat Rogers, warning that Democrats couldn’t “take chances” with a battleground Senate seat.

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She has said she does not believe the Israeli government has carried out a genocide in Gaza, and calls herself a “proud pro-Israel Democrat.”

This has given her widespread support from AIPAC, the hard-line pro-Israel lobbying organization, which reportedly spent close to $30 million backing Stevens.

But before polls closed on Tuesday, Stevens promised to work with El-Sayed if he won.

Also in Michigan, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson was projected to win the Democratic nomination for governor, where she is hoping to replace term-limited Gretchen Whitmer.

She is likely to run against Republican gubernatorial candidate John James.

James is a Trump-backed candidate who came under scrutiny this week after a bombshell recording obtained by the Daily Beast captured him vowing to pass the “most conservative, most pro-life bill” possible—despite previously telling voters the law was settled.

Along with Michigan, four other states held primaries on Tuesday: Kansas, Virginia, Washington and Missouri.

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Farrah TomazinPolitical Correspondent

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