For the legions of weary Michiganders who have endured Democrats’ brutal and eye-wateringly expensive primary campaign to succeed outgoing Sen. Gary Peters, Tuesday marks the end of one battle and the beginning of another. A Democratic Party establishment that just spent months poisoning voters against progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed must now figure out how to put together their fractured party to hold a critical Senate seat in November.
Democrats’ mess in Michigan, and El-Sayed’s ability to weather what should have been a debilitating coordinated effort by Democratic leaders to dislodge him from front-runner status, should be a wake-up call to the party’s Washington elite.
Whether voters select El-Sayed or his main opponent, Rep. Haley Stevens, the Democratic Party will face the monumental task of restoring trust among the many rank-and-file Democrats who suspect the party establishment would rather surrender the state’s Senate seat to a Republican than legitimize El-Sayed’s outsider candidacy.
This is a preview of a column by Max Burns. Read the full column here and don’t miss MS NOW’s live coverage of today’s key primary races in Michigan, Missouri, Kansas, Virginia and Washington.
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