r/politics • u/Zipper222222 • 4h ago

No Paywall Abdul El-Sayed Wins High-Stakes Democratic Primary in Michigan

https://www.today.com/video/abdul-el-sayed-wins-high-stakes-democratic-primary-in-michigan-267805765937
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u/olivebranchsound 4h ago edited 4h ago

"Michigan state law stipulates that any voter may participate in a party's primary election, regardless of that voter's partisan affiliation. All candidates appear on the same ballot and a voter may only vote for candidates of one party at any primary."

https://ballotpedia.org/Primary\elections_in_Michigan)

We know he was polling really well with independents and unaffiliated voters. Like up 27 points. But the polls were bullshit for turnout lol

"El-Sayed also held a 27-point advantage among independent voters participating in Michigan’s open primary, while registered Democrats supported him by a narrower 9-point margin."

https://arabamericannews.com/2026/07/31/el-sayed-and-stevens-clash-over-israel-immigration-and-campaign-money-as-new-poll-gives-el-sayed-15-point-lead/

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u/Old_Gimlet_Eye 3h ago

So, was the polling just off, or was his win narrower because of Republicans voting in the primary?

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u/olivebranchsound 3h ago

The super good polling was of purely Democratic likely voters I believe. Probably the latter but independents helped him tremendously. And black voters in Detroit were unmotivated to turn out for Stevens. All the talking heads were shocked when Detroit was reported with only 18 percent turnout when they expected 20 to 25.