Obama pledges 5% gain in Wayne County for El-Sayed

Former President Barack Obama entered the Michigan Senate race on Saturday, joining a rally in Detroit that coincided with the opening of early voting for the November 3 general election. He stood before thousands at Cass Technical High School alongside Jocelyn Benson, the Democratic nominee for governor, to support Abdul El-Sayed.

The central objective of the campaign is Wayne County, the district where El-Sayed faces his largest deficit. In the August primary, El-Sayed lost the county by a margin of roughly six points, trailing Haley Stevens, 45 percent to 51 percent. Obama told the audience that his goal was to close that specific gap. He framed the election as a mechanism to remove money from politics and place it directly into the hands of voters.

El-Sayed, a doctor and former Wayne County health official, secured the nomination after defeating the establishment-backed Stevens. Obama noted that he had stayed on the sidelines during that primary but spoke by phone with El-Sayed afterward. The former president acknowledged their differing views on the Affordable Care Act, a policy El-Sayed has previously called an incremental fix. Obama said they would not agree on every detail, comparing their political disagreements to his own relationship with First Lady Michelle Obama.

The former president directed sharp criticism at the White House, accusing Donald Trump of enriching his family and establishing a culture of taking favors. He mocked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for focusing on the physical appearance of troops. Obama also targeted Trump's trade policy, stating that the president was toughest on Canada, the neighbor just across the bridge from Detroit. He referenced the White House renovation projects, suggesting the administration was more interested in interior design than governance.

The campaign faces a tight national race. The Cook Political Report rates the contest a toss-up. A Marist poll conducted in mid-October showed El-Sayed at 50 percent and Republican challenger Mike Rogers at 48 percent. RealClearPolitics averages place El-Sayed ahead by 2.6 points. Republicans have not held a Michigan Senate seat in 25 years, but they view this race as a strong opportunity to flip the seat.

Rogers, a former congressman, lost to Elissa Slotkin by less than half a percentage point in the 2024 Senate race. Slotkin, who spoke at the Detroit rally, said Michigan voters prefer electing fighters. She stated that she and El-Sayed agree on more than they disagree and that their election would provide a check on the executive branch. Trump is scheduled to visit Port Huron on Sunday to rally with state Republicans, marking his first trip to St. Clair County.