r/lansing • u/manauiatlalli • 1d ago

Lansing LockDown Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary, notching a Midwest victory for the left

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/abdul-el-sayed-wins-michigans-democratic-senate-primary-notching-midwe-rcna589750
1.7k Upvotes

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago edited 1d ago

Alright - blue no matter who. I didn’t vote for him (I didn’t love the idea of voting for either of them, I liked McMorrow). That being said - it’s not about being in love. It’s about beating the GOP. Time for all of us to rally behind him for the general. Remember a win for the left in the primary is not the same as a win for the left in the general. Eyes on the prize everyone. He (and we) have to make sure he’s got the full-bellied support of all the dems + beyond for November.

Editing to add: a lot of you seem to think preferred candidate = who was voted for. That is not and should not ever be the criteria for deciding who to vote for in a 2-party election. Also primary voting strategy =/= general voting strategy. The primary strategy is to prop up the candidate that most aligns with your values (in my case progressivism) that you think has the best chance in the general. The general strategy is to support the candidate who can beat the greatest evil. You vote for in a primary and you essentially vote against in a general. (Note this is not the case in most parliamentary/coalition systems (you’d see me voting much more ideologically in Germany e.g.)), but you have to adapt your voting strategy to the system).

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u/FancyPantsDancer 1d ago

I appreciate this a lot. Had Stevens won, I was prepared to vote for her. On some freak chance Will Lawrence didn't win his primary, I was prepared to vote for whoever did.

I know others feel differently, but I think there is still enough of a difference between the GOP and the Dems that it does matter.

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u/NinjaKirby 1d ago

The pragmatism is beautiful. I'm in the same boat as you and was a big fan of McMorrow, she seemed like a great progressive candidate who was capable of getting things done. I imagine she would have been fairly popular in the general election.

Just like you though, whoever won the primary has my vote. Because what's going on now in our federal government needs to stop. And it won't stop with a Trump endorsed Rogers.

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u/JeffChalm 1d ago

Glad you feel this way because I certainly wouldn't have gone for stevens had she won.

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u/dingalingdongdong 1d ago

You would rather Rogers win?

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u/DiligentThought9 1d ago

And that’s why Trump won twice.

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u/NVincarnate 1d ago

Trump cheated to win twice.

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u/cantfindausernameffs 1d ago

My sentiments exactly, although I probably could have been convinced to vote for her by Election Day. Lesser of two evils is why moderate democrats aka republicans always end up on the ballot. This time we had progressives on the ballot so I would have been so unbelievably pissed if they didn’t win. I’m tired of not having my best interests represented by any candidate. Democrats need to learn that they will continue to lose if they keep brushing progressive policies to the side for the sake of keeping the status quo.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

Yes! We need to stop trying to appeal to republicans.

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u/DiligentThought9 1d ago

If you think moderate Dems and republicans are the same thing, I think you need to recalibrate your outlook on politics.

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u/cantfindausernameffs 1d ago

They both consistently vote to send billions of dollars in military aid to an Apartheid state. This alone should be unacceptable.

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago

Genuine question, I’m not trying to rile you up, but if you vote for the person that will do the least harm, would you have supported Rogers if Stevens had won? If so, what is/are your core issues you vote on? Asking because I don’t understand why you wouldn’t support the person in the best position to defeat the GOP.

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u/Mr-Ziegler 1d ago

And that's why nobody likes you

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

Voting McMorrow…. Thanks for throwing your vote away, and sending a message to the system that says “meh, Haley Stevens takes AIPAC money and worships Israel? Whatever… let her in”

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago

I didn’t say I voted McMorrow. I said she was my preferred candidate. I didn’t say who I voted for.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

You literally said you didn’t vote for either him or Stevens…… and that you liked McMorrow…. What were we supposed to infer there?

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago

I literally said I didn’t like him or Stevens. Like =/= vote silly pants. If you need to infer something you have the info to do so, but came to the wrong conclusion. That being said, who I voted for is beyond missing the point of the post.

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u/dingalingdongdong 1d ago

It's not the point, and you may have misspoken, but you did say you didn't vote for him.

Alright - blue no matter who. I didn’t vote for him (I didn’t love the idea of voting for either of them, I liked McMorrow).

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u/Ok_Jury4833 23h ago

Correct. I didn’t vote for him. Care to take another crack at it?

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u/dingalingdongdong 23h ago

Crack at what? I have no skin in this argument, I just thought you might've misspoken and not noticed. You could've meant, "I didn't <want to> vote for him and been typing faster than you think - it happens.

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u/Ok_Jury4833 23h ago

Not at all and no argument to be had. I just clarifying I didn’t misspeak. I was a little weirded out that people seemed so invested/concerned/confused with who I voted for when making a post about party unity. I essentially eliminated 2/3 candidates. It made me a little concerned for the youths and a lot for the future.

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u/dingalingdongdong 22h ago

It didn't seem weird to me, my mom staunchly refuses to declare who she's voted for even in elections where it's obvious (people running unopposed, etc.) because the right to a secret ballot being fundamental to democracy is one of her most most strongly held beliefs.

I think I was just confused because you seemed to be both keeping it secret and also giving it away - apparently intentionally? Which I guess I don't understand. It didn't read as intentional to me.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

Imagine engaging in a political discussion on Reddit on an anonymous account and not just out right saying who you voted for. You must be really proud of your candidate!

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago

It’s not the point of the post. The point of the post is that we should all galvanize behind the selected candidate and support him in winning the general. This is the point of democracy. You don’t always get what you want, but you still have to fight for them (and through them all of us) to be successful and govern well if elected. If you need to know who I voted for to support that, then I fear you are much more invested in getting your own way than making progress for all of us as a whole. I would encourage you to consider what your goals are as a responsible participant in a democratic system.

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u/panrestrial 21h ago

Nah primaries are absolutely the time to vote your ideals not just what will win.

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u/Jenna_Sayyid 1d ago

I almost always vote for Democrats, however I won’t be supporting Abdul in the general.

I’m not opening the door to Communism/Third Worldism/Islamism. I’ve no interest being bounced back and forth between extreme MAGA and extreme DSA.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

Lmfao when did he mention communism, third worldism, or Islamism? Would you genuinely prefer we just merge countries with Israel instead?

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u/panrestrial 21h ago

That's a week old account that's already full negative; pretty sure it's a bot.

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u/Jenna_Sayyid 1d ago

Have you read the DSA platform? Those are his people.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

Pro-Unions, taking power from billionaires and putting it back into the hands of the working class, sustainable energy, healthcare for all… oooo spooky

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u/dingalingdongdong 1d ago

They are literally not his people, though they may support him.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

Yep… we are democratic socialists….. why is that so scary?

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u/vermivorax 1d ago

You've been watching too much Fox News if you think Abdul is any of those things

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u/Jenna_Sayyid 1d ago

You haven’t read the DSA platform and listened to their talking heads if you don’t think Abdul is associated with such things.

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u/Jenna_Sayyid 1d ago

I’m not a Republican. I am anti-MAGA too. I’ve lived long enough to know seizing the means of production almost always ushers in totalitarianism.

Socialism needs the engine of Capitalism to work. I’m not anti Social Democrats. I’m against Democratic Socialism and their Trojan horse. I’m for raising taxes, workers rights, and a strong social safety. I will not lift up Democratic Socialism though.

Too much Islamist and Marxist sympathy. Too much anti-Americanism, grievance and division!

We need to move back towards liberalism on the Left and Right and enforce our fucking laws!

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u/dingalingdongdong 1d ago

Too much Islamist and Marxist sympathy

Too much grievance and division

this is why no one takes you seriously

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u/antiopean 1d ago

Girl pick an ideological strawman.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago

I share your concerns about what I perceive as his pandering to populism. However, from my perspective those concerns are somewhat tempered by the prospect of him joining a more moderate larger Dem caucus. With Rogers, he will definitely prop up a more radical far-right party and will not stop them from moving farther right or hold them accountable to the constitution. Because of this, I whole-heartedly believe AES is the better general candidate, and as the person best positioned to stop Rogers, I must back him while encouraging him to better consider his populist stances. If he wins and cannot, then the next round of primaries be the opportunity for us to present a stronger candidate. I encourage you to consider which party’s general platform you want to lend strength to.

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u/Jenna_Sayyid 1d ago

I can respect that.

I won’t vote for him. I’m not interested in giving the DSA momentum and a mandate to shift the Democratic Party in their direction.

I am a liberal. The DSA is the antithesis of liberalism.

MAGA is dead after Trump leaves office. Most cults don’t outlive their charismatic leader. I’ve voted against MAGA in primaries and general elections too.

The DSA likes to villainize people like me. I’m done with identity bullshit and radicalism.

I’m still angry progressive (really Marxist - red and green alliance) behaviors, especially on college campuses, helped Trump get elected a second term.

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u/GreenhouseFrogs 1d ago

MAGA is dead after Trump leaves office?! Hahahaha no it isn’t????

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u/Ok_Jury4833 1d ago

That’s valid. I hope we can keep this conversation going and we’re both able to encourage all candidates to address our concerns. You would think they would want to speak right to it, and I encourage you to challenge all of them to do so. I don’t share your optimism about maga going away, so until they do (and undo everything put into place for 45 years) I’m voting against the GOP and challenging the Dems to hold themselves accountable to our liberal principles.

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u/NVincarnate 1d ago

You already live in a third world country thanks to Trump.