From "inshallah" to "alhamdulillah": Abdul El-Sayed celebrates historic Michigan Senate win

Democrat Abdul El-Sayed made history early Wednesday when he was declared the winner of Michigan's U.S. Senate race. CBS News projects that El-Sayed, 42, will become the first Muslim ever elected to the U.S. Senate. He spoke to a cheering crowd in Detroit, saying that his opponents tried to use his name and his faith against him — but that it did not work.

El-Sayed defeated Republican Mike Rogers, a former member of Congress, in what many called one of the most heated races of the midterm elections. During his campaign, El-Sayed often said 'inshallah,' an Arabic phrase meaning 'God willing,' when people asked about the outcome. In his victory speech, he told the crowd, 'Today, tonight, we can turn that inshallah into an alhamdulillah,' explaining that the second phrase means 'praise be to God.'

Before Election Day, President Trump and Texas Senator Ted Cruz called El-Sayed a 'jihadist' and accused him of belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood. El-Sayed has firmly denied ever being a member of that group. He said his opponents focused on his name and his religion because they did not have better arguments to make.

In his speech, El-Sayed said his opponents ran 'one of the ugliest campaigns we've seen in our lifetimes.' He said they were trying to build an America 'too small for some of us,' but that Michigan voters rejected that message. He told his defeated opponent, Mike Rogers, to 'enjoy your retirement,' adding, 'You chose hate, and Michigan chose hope.'

El-Sayed also addressed Vice President JD Vance with a playful jab. Under the Constitution, the Vice President swears in new senators, which means Vance — from Ohio — will have to officially welcome El-Sayed into the Senate. 'Wolverine one, Buckeye zero,' El-Sayed said, referencing the rival mascots of the University of Michigan and Ohio State University.

He also had words for President Trump, who had mocked his name during the campaign. El-Sayed said the president had 'struggled' with his name, but that there was a simple fix going forward. 'After J.D. swears me in in January, you can just go on and call me Senator,' he said.

El-Sayed took aim at AIPAC, a powerful political group focused on U.S.-Israel relations, saying the group spent $42 million trying to defeat him. He thanked them sarcastically, saying it gave him 'the opportunity to beat you twice.' He also spoke about the conflict in Gaza, saying people are unfairly called hateful for believing Palestinian children deserve to grow up safely. 'That's not hate. It's love,' he said.

The money spent against El-Sayed was enormous. His opponents spent more than $350 million total across the primary and general elections, which is a record for Michigan. Despite being outspent by a huge margin, El-Sayed said his campaign proved something important: 'We built something bigger than a bank account. We built a movement.'

During the campaign, El-Sayed said he met many Michigan residents whose struggles inspired him. He spoke about a mother fighting to keep her sick children's medicine, a grandmother trying to protect her grandson from street violence, and a union autoworker seeking fair pay. He said their fights became his fight, and their hopes became the reason he ran.

El-Sayed ended his speech by calling on supporters to stay involved beyond Election Day. He said winning one Senate seat 'was never the goal' — the real goal is to use that seat to change politics for the better. He called for getting money out of politics, putting more money in working people's pockets, and passing Medicare for All, a plan that would provide government health insurance to all Americans.