El-Sayed’s Senate win breaks barriers for Arab Americans in Michigan

The Arab-American community are now embracing Abdul El-Sayed's victory. El-Sayed, who is a former public health official and a Democrat, will now become the nation's first Muslim senator. He's the first Muslim senator in U.S. history who just broke a huge barrier. It's a message for every single person in any minority, whether you're black, whether you're Hispanic, whether you're Arab, whether you're Muslim, whether you're Jewish, That this country has a place for you. The Arab Americans in Michigan and across the U.S. celebrated his win, many saying it was a bomb after a bitter, divisive primary that saw a surge of Islamophobic rhetoric. Yes, for so many in this community, they finally saw themselves in a candidate who appealed to them, but it had to do far more than just his ethnicity or his religion. Up until right about now, you might have noticed I always say, inshallah or God willing, whenever the outcome of this race was mentioned, But today, tonight, we can turn that insha'Allah into Alhamdulillah. Myself and many other folks did not support Abdul Sayyed just because he's a Muslim or he's an Arab. We supported him because he carries the values of being a human. He is someone who cares about others. Muslim voters who make up only about 2% of voters in Michigan overwhelmingly voted for El Sayed. About 9 in 10 Michigan Senate voters who are Muslim cast their ballot for him.