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After the cyclone Barack Obama in Detroit, which galvanized the Democrats also in view of the 2028 presidential elections, Donald Trump arrives in Michigan. It is the 26th rally in just 12 days but it is the first time, during his electoral tour for the midterms, that the American president visits this crucial state for control of the Senate. His arrival was preceded by violent attacks against the democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed who, in Saturday’s rally, Obama presented as a new Roosevelt, the bearer of the change that liberal Americans are asking for. In Port Huron the president spent almost the entire rally denigrating the Egyptian-born epidemiologist who will challenge former Republican congressman Mike Rogers on November 3. “If he wins he will bring in hordes of jihadists,” he attacked, accusing El-Sayed of being a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood and his mother of having worked for an organization that financed Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. “A Jew who supports El-Sayed should be ashamed,” the tycoon then thundered in his invective, claiming that the Democratic candidate “celebrated” the Hamas attacks on 7 October. “We don’t want a Muslim brother in the Senate,” he insisted.
He then went on to attack Obama, calling him “my opponent”, as if he were campaigning against the former president: “Obama is now campaigning for a jihadist from the Muslim Brotherhood, who hates Jews, blacks, Americans and Trump. He is a fake doctor, running what is considered the worst clinic in America.” The commander-in-chief’s strategy of presenting El-Sayed as a dangerous Islamic extremist who aims to bring sharia to the halls of Capitol Hill has so far not proved effective. At least according to the polls which give the Dem a slight advantage over the Republican. But in Michigan, especially in the stronghold of Port Huron, it could be a different story.
The epidemiologist was skilled in responding to The Donald’s attacks, avoiding direct insults and reiterating his loyalty to the values enshrined in the American Constitution. A few days ago, a confrontation between the candidate and a member of the public who asked him to “distance himself from the Muslim Brotherhood” went viral on social media. “I clearly distance myself” from the movement, El-Sayed replied. “But what question is that?” In an election advert, however, he reaffirmed his Muslim beliefs, claiming that “there is too little faith in Washington”. On the other hand, Trump flew to Port Huron, in an area of Michigan where he obtained over 66% of the votes in the 2024 presidential elections. He was careful not to enter the Detroit arena where the trade battle against Canada caused serious repercussions in the automotive industry, so much so that Rogers was forced to distance himself from the president’s policies. Trump nevertheless praised him, describing him as a figure who shares Michigan values. «I call it apple-pie, (apple pie). He will be an extraordinary senator. Solid as a rock. A true American, to the core,” he told Fox News.
The game, in Michigan as in other states in the balance, is still open. Democrats need a net gain of four seats in both the Senate and the House to overturn the narrow Republican majorities. And it could be a small but significant segment of repentant Trumpians who stir up the cards. According to the latest Washington Post poll, in fact, approximately one in five registered voters of those who voted for the president in 2024, or 22%, no longer approve of his actions and would not choose him at the polls. This group represents approximately 8% of the electorate. These are not voters who are naturally oriented towards Democrats, the vast majority define themselves as Republicans or Independents, but in these elections they have declared that they will vote for the opposite side.