In the first two weeks of August, the upper Midwest states of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota will hold primaries for Governor and US Senate, along with House races and state legislative races.
The Democratic Party is facing splits, whereby “Democratic Socialists” are challenging establishment Democrats, which might lead to future problems against Republican opponents.
Today, the situation in Michigan will be discussed, followed by Wisconsin and Minnesota over the next two days.
In Michigan, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is running for Governor, while the likely Republican nominee is African American Congressman John James, who ran unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2018 and 2020, after graduating West Point and serving for eight years in the military.
More controversial is the battle for the Democratic Senate nomination between Congresswoman Haley Stevens and physician Abdul El Sayed, who was Health Director for Detroit and for Wayne County, and was a competitor in 2018 for the Michigan Gubernatorial race.
Abdul El Sayed is backed by Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Chris Van Hollen, and Elizabeth Warren, and is vehemently opposed by the pressure group AIPAC, since he is a major critic of Israel and its war in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank against Palestinians.
Stevens is supported by mainstream Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, among others.
The concern of many is that Abdul El Sayed, who would be the first Muslim Senator if he won the Senate race, would have major problems against Republican Congressman Mike Rogers in the election, when Democrats need to gain four seats in the Senate to win the majority of the chamber, and with Democratic Senator Gary Peters presently holding that seat.
The strong belief of many is that IF Michigan is lost to the Republicans, there is no way for Democrats to gain the four seats needed to be the majority in the US Senate in the 120th Congress (2027-2029).