‘Habibi PAC’: First Muslim US Senator-elect El-Sayed launches new political action committee
US Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed speaks onstage after declaring victory in Michigan's US Senate race during an election night party at The Department at Hudson's in Detroit, Michigan, early on November 4, 2026. Photograph: (AFP)
Abdul El-Sayed launches Habibi PAC days after defeating Mike Rogers, turning the Arabic expression popularised during his historic US Senate campaign into a political action committee.
Michigan Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed has launched a political action committee called the “Habibi PAC”, days after winning his Senate race against Mike Rogers and becoming the first muslim member of the United States Senate. A Federal Election Commission filing dated Thursday shows "Habibi PAC" registered under the sponsorship of Abdul El-Sayed. Political Action Committees are those which are designed to raise funds to support and oppose candidates for office. These are separate from a politician's own campaign.
The name “Habibi” is Arabic for “my beloved,” which became a popular political expression during the campaign. El-Sayed, who had campaigned openly with his Muslim identity, has been attacked by Republican leadership based on his faith. President Donald Trump called him a “jihadist”; JD Vance called him a “little weasel”, harbouring "hatred" for Michigan and the US by pushing a "politics of grievance". Republican candidate Mike Rogers also sought to associate him with the Muslim Brotherhood movement, despite no established connection.
El-Sayed, the son of Egyptian immigrants, defeated Republican Mike Rogers. Just after the election, El-Sayed used the word to take a dig at US Vice President JD Vance in his victory speech from Detroit: “JD, habibi, there is this delicious irony in the fact that you’re constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January.”
El-Sayed's victory came despite record-breaking financial opposition, primarily during a fiercely contested Democratic primary. AIPAC-affiliated efforts poured approximately $30 million to over $60 million into the Michigan Democratic primary to defeat El-Sayed. The 2026 Midterms election was also fiercely contested one. It was the most expensive one on record. According to an analysis of FEC data by OpenSecrets, total spending is expected to reach $11.9bn; among it, the so-called dark money from undisclosed donors has reached at least $1.47bn.
