Following his primary victory over Haley Stevens, Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed traded sharp criticism with Vice President J.D. Vance in separate television interviews Wednesday.
Appearing on Fox News with host Laura Ingraham, Vance pointed to El-Sayed’s victory—despite being outspent 9-to-1—as evidence of a shift within the Democratic base toward radical positions.
“First of all, the base of the Democratic Party just wants radicals, it wants these DSA types, it wants people who hate even the idea of private property ownership,” Vance said.
Vance disputed El-Sayed’s appeal to working-class voters, arguing that his platform relies on immigration policies that undercut American workers and opposition to tariffs aimed at protecting manufacturing.
“He’s this guy who holds himself out as a working-class hero, as a guy who’s going to fight for the working class,” Vance said. “How does he fight for the working class? By flooding his state and his country with low-wage immigrants. Of course, those people will drive down the wages of the working class.”
Vance added that El-Sayed’s strongest support came from “wealthy white liberals” and downwardly mobile, college-educated voters burdened by student debt rather than traditional working-class enclaves.
Responding to Vance’s remarks during an interview on MS NOW with host Jacob Soboroff, El-Sayed dismissed the Vice President’s comments and shifted focus to his platform and Republican opponents.
“The last thing that he said that made any sense was Hillbilly Elegy, after he said that Donald Trump had no business being president of anything,” El-Sayed said. “And then he decided to suck up to power.”
El-Sayed argued that Republican figures prioritize corporate interests over working-class citizens, citing Republican opponent Mike Rogers’ legislative record in Congress.
“For the 14 years he was serving in Congress, he took over $1 million from the pharmaceutical industry. He voted 19 times to raise prescription drug prices,” El-Sayed said. “We’re trying to get money out of politics, to put money in your pocket, pass Medicare for all, which, of course, are things that people like Ohio J.D. Vance and Mike Rogers have no clue about because they’ve always been in it for themselves rather than for the public.”
The exchange marks an early clash between the two parties as the campaign for Michigan’s open Senate seat moves into the general election.
READ: Abdul El-Sayed Defeats Haley Stevens In Michigan Democratic Senate Primary
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox.
