U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed appears at a rally in Grand Rapids, Mich., where he was joined by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Photo by Christopher J. Dean/Shutterstock.

Michigan’s Senate primary could mark a turning point for democratic socialists, even though the marquee candidate in the state isn’t actually a democratic socialist.

Abdul El-Sayed says he’s a capitalist in favor of strong progressive economic guardrails, not a democratic socialist. Though he has embraced highlights of the DSA agenda, fundraised for local DSA organizations, and campaigned with major democratic socialist figures like Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

His statewide victory in the perennial battleground of Michigan was a rejection of the Democratic establishment, and a victory for the left wing of the party. So was the victory of William Lawrence, a DSA member, who will run on the Democratic ticket in a Michigan swing House district currently held by a Republican.

El-Sayed’s campaign message focuses on economic populism: raising taxes on billionaires to strengthen the social safety net, making housing more affordable, and getting corporate money out of politics. Additionally, his support for Medicare-for-all and reducing U.S. support for Israel used to be rejected by most Americans, but now have majority support.

These ideas represent priorities for democratic socialists that have support from broad swaths of Democratic voters and independents. These same issues are where Republicans are out of step with public opinion.

Where Democrats are out of step with the national mood is their increasing embrace of the larger socialist ideology and label.

When many Americans hear socialism, they don’t think of democratic socialism that you see in many wealthy Scandinavian countries that have high standards of living. They think of Soviet-style communism and bread lines.

Several polls in the last year have shown that a majority of Democrats have a positive view of socialism, while vast majorities of both Republicans and independents have a negative view. The latest numbers come from a Fox News poll, which aligns with other polling over the last year.

Views of Socialism

Source: Conducted July 17-20, 2026 under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News national poll includes interviews among 1,003 registered voters.

So how will Republicans use this sentiment to their advantage?

President Trump has been relentless in labeling all Democrats as socialists for years. Now he’s labeling candidates from the Democratic Socialists of America as communists, and he’s applying that to El-Sayed, too.

Republicans see Michigan as their best chance to flip a Democratic Senate seat, and they are going to spend big on anti-socialist messaging.

The challenge for El-Sayed is to overcome the negative views of the label by promoting his economic agenda, while not rejecting the same label that’s embraced by his most passionate supporters.

The GOP messaging is attempting to alienate voters from El-Sayed, and I use the term alienate deliberately. His Republican opponent, former Rep. Mike Rogers, calls him “anti-American.” In the first statement from the National Republican Senatorial Committee since the primary, they invoked the candidate’s full name, including his middle name Mohamed, in a clear attempt to make his identity an issue.

This tactic has become a sad racist trope since Trump began referring to former President Obama as “Barack Hussein Obama” and pushing birther conspiracy theories.

(By the way, like Obama, El-Sayed was born in America. He is a native of Rochester Hills, Mich.)

It’s not only the attacks from the right working against candidates like El-Sayed.

Just in the last 10 days, the co-chair of the DSA was on Fox News calling for abolishing the Senate, and the democratic socialist candidate for governor of Wisconsin couldn’t give a straight answer on whether she thinks Thanksgiving should be canceled.

These leaders know that their words are going to bounce around social media as soundbites without nuance or context, and that’s how most voters will hear them — doing no favors for candidates in tight races whose platforms do support popular (and sometimes socialist) ideas.

The big question for Democrats is whether these far-left primary victories represent a new course for the party. And if so, can they align on messaging that doesn’t leave them fractured with each other and at odds with broader public opinion?

For many people, whether Abdul El-Sayed gets elected by the voters of Michigan in November will be the answer.

THIS WEEK’S OPEN TABS

🇺🇦 NPR has fresh reporting on the shortage of U.S.-made precision missiles, which I mentioned last week as a major concern with the war in Iran. In Ukraine, the shortage is having devastating effects as Russian attacks on Kyiv ramp up.

🏭 Opposition to data centers seems pretty broad, but The Atlantic reports on the troubled story of one Maine town that was desperate to build one and stopped a statewide moratorium. Listen here to the Radio Atlantic podcast episode.

Take care,

Arnie Seipel
KCRW Editor-in-Chief
 

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Disclaimer: This newsletter, “KCRW's Steady State,” is not affiliated with The Steady State, a nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization founded in 2016 and comprised of more than 390 former senior national security professionals. They advocate for constitutional democracy, the rule of law, and the preservation of America’s national security institutions.