Candidate for US Senate makes impressive local stop

Abdul El-Sayed introduces himself at a recent campaign stop at Lake Michigan College in South Haven

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senator, visited the community on Thursday July 10, 2025. He appeared at Lake Michigan College (South Haven campus) to introduce himself to voters and answer questions. Arriving at 6:30 pm, he was introduced by South Haven Mayor Annie Brown.

"I love America because I know what America gave to me," Abdul said, narrating his story from birth in Rochester Hills to graduation from the University of Michigan and enrollment in medical school funded by an NIH fellowship at Columbia University. He earned a second doctorate at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar.

From an early age, he was "taught about opportunity," he explained. Traveling between Michigan and Egypt during summer vacations, he acknowledges he received "opportunity my [Egyptian] cousins didn't dream of."

Part of that opportunity, Abdul explained, included receiving vaccines, being educated in public schools, and vacationing at a cottage in Montcalm County that has been in the family for sixty years.

Given that he was born and raised in Michigan, Dr. El-Sayed explained how he ended up with the name "Abdul." His given name is much longer and more difficult to pronounce. When his stepmother Jackie enrolled him in kindergarten, they settled on the name Abdul--a popular name in 1989, he explains, given the popularity of both Paula Abdul and Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

In another anecdote, Abdul reflected on his graduation from the University of Michigan. He was valedictorian and selected to speak at commencement. After he finished, the invited guest--President Bill Clinton--spoke. Following the ceremony, Abdul says "President Clinton shook my hand and asked me what I was studying. I told him medicine. He questioned why I was going to med school; he said I had a gift for communication and should consider politics."

Abdul El-Sayed explained that he's running for U.S. Senate because, as a doctor, he asked two recurring questions: "What's wrong?" and "How can I help?" He is interested in improving health outcomes for US citizens by improving the entire health care system.

"I can go from Oakland County to Detroit and lose ten years in life expectancy," Abdul explains, as an example of the inequity he seeks to address.

He holds a PhD in public health and served as the Director of the Department of Health, Human, and Veterans Services for Wayne County from 2023 to 2025. He is a Democratic candidate in a senate race opened up by the announcement that incumbent Senator Gary Peters (D) is not pursuing reelection. Other Democrats who have announced include U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Birmingham), state Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), and former Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit).

Former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake) is currently the only Republican candidate, though U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Zeeland) is reportedly considering a run (and Huizenga's district includes Casco Township).

Casco Township resident Krystin Grenon attended the event because she had supported Abdul in a previous campaign and wanted to learn more about him. She was positively impressed. "He's smart. He's willing to work with the other side and look for common ground." She likes that he supports Medicare for all and wants to address both medical debt and student debt. She was impressed that when he served as Wayne County Health Director he founded a program that provides kids with free glasses.

Grenon was also impressed with Abdul's character. "He's not beholden to big money," she explained. "He seemed like a good person; what he did for the city of Detroit he would do for the people. He was genuine. I believed him and liked him."

In the last week, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed also met with residents in Saugatuck, Douglas and Benton Harbor.

The field will be narrowed at the primary slated for August of 2026. The next US Senator from Michigan will be elected in November of 2026.