In the contested terrain of Michigan's Senate race, Bernie Sanders has named what he sees as a quiet betrayal within the Democratic Party itself — a donor class and party leadership unwilling to fully support a progressive nominee whose politics challenge both concentrated wealth and American foreign policy toward Israel. Abdul El-Sayed, a physician turned politician, finds himself navigating not only a tight general election against Republican Mike Rogers but also the internal fractures of a party whose unity he needs and whose enthusiasm, Sanders suggests, is being withheld. The race has bec
Sanders accuses Democratic donors of undermining El-Sayed's Michigan Senate bid
Stay on the issues that impact working families in Michigan
Mark
So Sanders is saying the Democratic establishment wants El-Sayed to lose. That's a pretty serious charge. What's actually driving that, if it's real?
Mimi
Sanders frames it as ideological—that wealthy Democrats see progressives as threats to their interests and to U.S. support for Israel. But the timing matters. El-Sayed won a close primary and now he's facing real questions about his judgment, particularly around Hasan Piker.
Luke
Hold on. Sanders says this is about oligarchy and Israel policy. But Egbewole's point is simpler: Democrats want to win the Senate, and El-Sayed has to consolidate his own party after a narrow primary win. Those aren't incompatible with supporting him.
Mark
So is Sanders describing real sabotage, or is he reading ideological motives into normal skepticism?
Mimi
He's naming a real dynamic—some Democrats are genuinely uncomfortable with El-Sayed's politics and his associations. But "less than enthusiastic" isn't the same as actively undermining him. And El-Sayed himself keeps trying to move the conversation to economics, not ideology.
Luke
Right. And the polling shows he's actually competitive. He's down three points in a Fox poll, within the margin of error. If the establishment were really sabotaging him, you'd expect to see that reflected in the numbers.
Mark
What about the Piker thing? Is that a real problem or a distraction?
Mimi
Both. Piker made statements that drew condemnation from major Democrats. El-Sayed distanced himself and apologized for his own past comments about the synagogue attack. But the fact that four reporters asked about it at the convention suggests it's still live.
Luke
The question is whether it's a symptom of deeper problems or a manageable controversy. El-Sayed's argument—that voters care about affordability and healthcare—is reasonable. But he can't ignore the issue entirely either.
Mark
So what does Sanders actually want El-Sayed to do?
Mimi
Stay focused on economic messaging. Sanders thinks that's the winning strategy and that the Piker controversy is a distraction from what matters to Michigan voters.
Luke
Which assumes the controversy will fade if ignored. That's a bet, not a certainty.
Le Pouls
- Sanders has publicly accused Democratic elites of quietly rooting against El-Sayed, framing the resistance as a defense of oligarchy and pro-Netanyahu foreign policy rather than a genuine concern about electability.
- El-Sayed's association with streamer Hasan Piker — whose remarks about American Jews drew condemnation from prominent Democrats — continues to dog his campaign despite his efforts to move past it.
- Comments El-Sayed made after a synagogue attack in Michigan, perceived by many as offering sympathy to the attacker's grievances, required a public apology at the state party convention and deepened doubts about his messaging discipline.
- Polling shows the race against Republican Mike Rogers is razor-thin, with El-Sayed needing near-total Democratic consolidation to win — the very consolidation Sanders claims party leaders are reluctant to deliver.
- Democratic strategists are pushing back on Sanders' framing, arguing El-Sayed must earn wavering voters himself rather than blame institutional resistance for his vulnerabilities.
In the contested terrain of Michigan's Senate race, Bernie Sanders has named what he sees as a quiet betrayal within the Democratic Party itself — a donor class and party leadership unwilling to fully support a progressive nominee whose politics challenge both concentrated wealth and American foreign policy toward Israel. Abdul El-Sayed, a physician turned politician, finds himself navigating not only a tight general election against Republican Mike Rogers but also the internal fractures of a party whose unity he needs and whose enthusiasm, Sanders suggests, is being withheld. The race has become a mirror for the Democratic Party's unresolved tensions between its progressive wing and its institutional center, with the outcome in November likely shaped as much by what happens inside the party as by what happens between the parties.
Bernie Sanders arrived in Michigan's Senate race this week not as a quiet ally but as an accuser, telling Politico Playbook that powerful Democrats and their donor class are deliberately withholding support from nominee Abdul El-Sayed. In Sanders' telling, the resistance is ideological — wealthy party figures see progressives as threats to their financial interests and to continued American backing of Benjamin Netanyahu's government in Israel. "Are they less than enthusiastic about Abdul? Yes, they are," Sanders said plainly.
El-Sayed, a physician and former Michigan health director, won the Democratic primary in August by a narrow margin over Representative Haley Stevens. He now faces Republican Mike Rogers in a general election that polling suggests is genuinely competitive — a Fox News survey showed Rogers ahead 51% to 47%, within the margin of error. The structural math is tight, and El-Sayed needs Democrats to consolidate around him quickly.
That consolidation has been complicated by two controversies. The first involves Hasan Piker, a popular online streamer who campaigned with El-Sayed during the primary before making remarks about American Jews and Israel that drew condemnation from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senator Elissa Slotkin, and others. El-Sayed has not appeared with Piker since and has tried to redirect attention to Michigan's affordability and healthcare concerns. When four reporters pressed him about Piker at the state party convention, he responded with visible frustration: "If you want to make this race about a streamer in California, I just think you're missing the boat."
The second controversy stems from comments El-Sayed made in March after a terrorist attack on a Michigan synagogue. His remark — "Hurt people, hurt people" — was widely criticized, including by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. At Saturday's convention, he offered an apology: "It wasn't the time for context, and you don't ever want to trample somebody's pain."
Sanders dismissed the Piker controversy as a media distraction engineered to pull the campaign away from economic issues, and urged El-Sayed to stay focused on working families. Democratic strategist Yemisi Egbewole, a former Biden chief of staff, offered a sharper counter: the party wants a Senate majority, Stevens has endorsed El-Sayed, and it is now his responsibility to win over her voters — not Sanders' job to explain away his vulnerabilities. The Republican National Committee, for its part, declared El-Sayed unfit for office and framed the race in terms of national security. The campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
Bernie Sanders stepped into Michigan's Senate race this week with a blunt accusation: some of the Democratic Party's most powerful figures and its donor class are quietly willing to see Abdul El-Sayed lose. Speaking to Politico Playbook on Monday, the Vermont independent claimed that wealthy Democrats view progressives like El-Sayed not merely as electoral liabilities but as fundamental threats—to their financial interests and to American support for Israel under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"You're talking about a small number of people who are at the head of the Democratic Party. You're talking about the donor class," Sanders said. "Are they less than enthusiastic about Abdul? Yes, they are." He framed the resistance as ideological, rooted in the belief that candidates like El-Sayed pose "a threat to oligarchy" and "a threat to American foreign policy and our continued support for the extremist Netanyahu government in Israel."
El-Sayed, a physician and former Michigan health director, won the Democratic primary in August by a narrow margin over U.S. Representative Haley Stevens. He now faces Republican Mike Rogers in a general election that recent polling shows is competitive. A Fox News survey conducted in August put Rogers ahead 51% to 47%, within the margin of error, while an AARP poll showed a similarly tight contest. Among Democrats, 91% backed El-Sayed; among Republicans, 96% supported Rogers.
But El-Sayed's path to November has been complicated by his association with Hasan Piker, a streamer with a large online following who campaigned alongside him during the primary. In August, Piker made remarks about American Jews and Israel that drew swift condemnation from prominent Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senators Cory Booker and Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, and Senator Jacky Rosen of Nevada. El-Sayed has not campaigned with Piker since the primary and has sought to move past the controversy, but the issue has persisted. At the Michigan Democratic Party convention on Saturday, four reporters pressed El-Sayed about his ties to the streamer. "We're in the state of Michigan," El-Sayed responded. "If you want to make this race about a streamer in California, I just think you're missing the boat. This is about affordability in Michigan. This is about seeing a doctor in Michigan."
El-Sayed also addressed another source of criticism at the convention: comments he made in March following a terrorist attack on a Michigan synagogue. He had said "Hurt people, hurt people" in the aftermath, a remark that drew rebuke from Michigan Democrats including Attorney General Dana Nessel. On Saturday, he apologized. "To anybody who feels like my comments may have been hurtful, I'm really sorry," he said. "That was not my intention. We condemned that terrorist attack. We condemned it outright. What I was trying to do was offer context for why it happened, but it wasn't the time for context, and you don't ever want to trample somebody's pain."
Democratic strategist Yemisi Egbewole, who served as chief of staff to President Biden, pushed back against Sanders' framing. She argued that the party's focus should remain on winning the Senate and that El-Sayed bears responsibility for consolidating Democratic voters after his primary victory. "Dems want a majority in the Senate," Egbewole said. "El-Sayed apologized for his comments about the Temple Israel attack and hasn't campaigned with Hasan. No one is as caught up in this oligarchy business as Sanders is. Stevens lost. She endorsed Abdul. It's now his job to win those voters."
Sanders, who backed El-Sayed throughout the primary, declined to join other Democrats in focusing on Piker's controversies. Instead, he dismissed the streamer's remarks as typical of online personalities and accused Republicans and the media of using the distraction to divert attention from economic issues. "Like every other podcaster in the world, he says dumb things that people should reject," Sanders said. He urged El-Sayed to keep his campaign centered on kitchen-table concerns. "Stay on the issues that impact working families in Michigan," Sanders said. "Do that, you're going to win—and I think he will."
The Republican National Committee rejected Sanders' defense of El-Sayed entirely. National press secretary Natalie Baldassarre issued a statement calling El-Sayed unfit for office based on his record and associations, framing the race as a matter of national security. El-Sayed's campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Citations marquantes
You're talking about a small number of people who are at the head of the Democratic Party. You're talking about the donor class. Are they less than enthusiastic about Abdul? Yes, they are.— Bernie Sanders
Dems want a majority in the Senate. El-Sayed apologized for his comments about the Temple Israel attack and hasn't campaigned with Hasan. It's now his job to win those voters.— Yemisi Egbewole, Democratic strategist and former Biden White House chief of staff
Envie de l'histoire complète ?
Lire l'original sur Fox News ↗
Politics & Governance