Eight Muslim lawmakers in US Congress now, as Ilhan Omar hails first Muslim senator El-Sayed
Eight Muslim lawmakers will now serve in the US Congress, in what is being seen as a historic milestone for Muslim American political representation. Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar expressed her delight after Abdul El-Sayed won a Senate seat from the state of Michigan.
In Tuesday's (November 3) midterm elections, Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican candidate Mike Rogers in Michigan to become the first Muslim ever elected to the US Senate. He is the first Muslim senator in the Senate's 237-year history.
On Wednesday (November 4), in a post on the social media platform X, Ilhan Omar warmly congratulated El-Sayed. Using two popular Arabic expressions, Omar wrote, 'Congratulations, Abdul El-Sayed. You turned that "Inshallah" into "Alhamdulillah."'
In the same post, Omar added, 'I am feeling very grateful thinking that from now on, eight of us Muslims will serve in Congress.'
The eight Muslim lawmakers elected and re-elected to Congress this time are Abdul El-Sayed, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Andre Carson, Latifa Simon, Adam Hamawi, Darializa Avila Chevalier and Ayesha Wahab. Among them, Abdul El-Sayed is the only senator; the other seven are members of the House of Representatives.
Abdul El-Sayed, 42, is a physician by profession and a former director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. The son of an Egyptian immigrant couple, El-Sayed previously ran for governor of Michigan in 2018.
In August's Democratic Party nomination contest, he defeated US Representative Haley Stevens and State Senator Mallory McMorrow to reach the general election. There, his opponent was Mike Rogers, a former congressman and FBI agent backed by Donald Trump.
The main agenda of El-Sayed's campaign was ensuring healthcare for all, reducing the cost of living and limiting corporate influence in politics. His opposition to unconditional US military aid to Israel, and his description of Israel's military campaign in Gaza as a 'genocide', also became one of the central talking points of the election.
During the campaign, Trump and his Republican allies questioned El-Sayed's patriotism and alleged links with extremist groups. El-Sayed firmly rejected those allegations. The Reuters news agency reported that no evidence was found to support the allegations. Democrats condemned the Trump camp's attacks as Islamophobic.
In 2006, Keith Ellison was elected as the first Muslim lawmaker in the US Congress, playing a pioneering role. Continuing that journey, the number of Muslim lawmakers in Congress has now reached eight.
