Obama Rallies Rapturous Michigan Crowd for El-Sayed: 'He'll Finish the Job We Started'

Barack Obama delivered a forceful endorsement of Abdul El-Sayed in Detroit on Saturday, telling a crowd of thousands that the Democratic Senate nominee was 'fighting for change, real change, that will get money out of politics and put money in your pocket.' The rally at Cass Technical High School, held on the first day of early voting in Michigan ahead of the 3 November general election, also featured secretary of state Jocelyn Benson, the party's candidate for governor.

Obama told the audience that El-Sayed would 'finish the job we started with the Affordable Care Act and guarantee quality, affordable healthcare to every single American.' The appearance marked the former president's first public show of support for El-Sayed, a doctor and former Wayne county health official who emerged from a bitter August primary in which Obama stayed on the sidelines. El-Sayed defeated the moderate congresswoman Haley Stevens, who had the backing of the Democratic establishment and pro-Israel organizations.

The former president went on the offensive against Donald Trump, accusing him of 'enriching himself and his family' and saying the administration had set a 'culture .. at the top' of taking favors. 'Never seen a president so intent on selling favors like this,' Obama said. He also mocked defense secretary Pete Hegseth as 'laser-focused' on the 'jawline and testosterone levels of our troops,' asking the crowd: 'How much time do you think this man spends in front of the mirror every day?'

On tariffs, Obama said Trump was toughest on 'that well-known evil empire,' meaning Canada, just across the bridge from Detroit. 'These are the people who gave us Martin Short and maple syrup,' he said. He also jabbed at Trump's White House renovations, including the ballroom and Rose Garden projects. 'He should be on HGTV,' Obama said. 'He's got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory.'

The Detroit stop was part of Obama's first weekend of in-person campaigning during the midterms, which began earlier in the day in Cleveland, Ohio, where he stumped for former Ohio senator Sherrod Brown and Democratic governor nominee Amy Acton while delivering similarly scathing remarks about the White House and the GOP.

Questions had hung over whether Obama would back El-Sayed at all. The candidate, a champion of Medicare for All, once described the Affordable Care Act, Obama's signature domestic achievement, as an incremental fix. The two men spoke by phone after the primary, and El-Sayed has since described Obama as a mentor figure. Addressing their differences directly, Obama acknowledged that El-Sayed 'didn't like some things you did as president.' 'We are not going to agree on every detail of every issue,' he said. 'You know who else doesn't agree with everything I do? Michelle Obama.'

El-Sayed has the most ground to make up in Wayne county, where Detroit is the county seat, after Stevens beat him there by about 51% to 45% in the August primaries. Obama last campaigned in Detroit, which is more than three-quarters Black, in October 2024 for Kamala Harris, and Harris herself appeared with El-Sayed in the city last month.

Republicans have not held a Michigan Senate seat in 25 years, but the party views the race as one of its better pickup opportunities nationwide. El-Sayed faces Mike Rogers, a former congressman endorsed by Trump who lost a 2024 Senate matchup against Democratic senator Elissa Slotkin by less than half a percentage point. The Cook Political Report rates the contest a toss-up. A Marist poll of likely voters conducted in mid-October put El-Sayed at 50% and Rogers at 48%, within the margin of error, while RealClearPolitics's average showed El-Sayed ahead by about 2.6 points in a similar timeframe.

Slotkin, a featured speaker at the rally, told the crowd that 'Michigan believes in electing fighters.' Of any disagreements she may have with El-Sayed, she said: 'It's OK because we agree on so much more.' She added: 'We're putting a check and balance on Donald Trump in the White House.'

Trump has attacked El-Sayed throughout the campaign, calling him a 'jihadist,' pointing to his middle name and alleging ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, which El-Sayed strongly denies. El-Sayed has also faced criticism from the establishment wing of his own party over appearances with leftwing streamer Hasan Piker. Trump is due in Michigan on Sunday for a rally with state Republicans in Port Huron, on the Canadian border, in what the city said would be the first presidential visit to St Clair county. If elected, El-Sayed would be the first Muslim and first Egyptian American in the US Senate. Benson faces Republican congressman John James, whose victory would make him Michigan's first Black governor. Closing his case, Obama said: 'We share those values of making sure everybody gets a fair shot in this society, and that the system's not just run for those at the top.'