Michigan progressive Abdul El-Sayed told MS NOW on Tuesday that Graham Platner should end his bid for Maine’s U.S. Senate seat after a woman accused Platner of sexual assault.

His remarks came after El-Sayed, who is running for Michigan’s Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, failed to explicitly say Platner should leave the race in a social media post after the story broke.  That perceived vagueness drew criticism from his major Democratic rival in the race, Rep. Haley Stevens.

El-Sayed, like Platner, has had the support of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in a pair of races that are critical to whether Democrats have a reasonable chance at taking back control of the Senate this fall. 

After reporting from Politico on Monday detailed at length the woman’s allegation, which Platner has denied, El-Sayed posted on social media: “Credible allegations of sexual assault cannot be ignored. Voters in Maine deserve a choice for US Senate that doesn’t force them to make a moral compromise between sexual violence or corporate servitude.” 

His statement stopped short of the explicit calls from other Democrats for Platner to leave the race. Before El-Sayed weighed in, Stevens said on X that “there should be no room for this conduct in the U.S. Senate or any public office. Graham Platner must step aside.” 

In Tuesday’s interview with MS NOW’s Chris Jansing, El-Sayed attempted to clarify the intent of his Monday night social media post. 

“He needs to step aside, and that was entirely the point of my statement,” El-Sayed said. “But I wanted to make it clear why, that you should not have to choose between sexual violence and corporate servitude.” 

When questioned on the lack of straightforwardness of his earlier post and about Stevens’ criticism, El-Sayed said he “made the statement specifically to say that [Platner] should step aside,” before pivoting to criticizing the large amount of money that has made its way into the Senate race in Michigan to support Stevens. 

Stevens and El-Sayed are set for a debate Tuesday night that carries major implications for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat. While Democrats currently control the office, President Donald Trump won Michigan in the 2024 presidential election. 

There’s clear interest amongst Republicans to see El-Sayed become the Democratic nominee, and the Senate GOP’s campaign arm recently launched a video labeling him “too radical” for the state ahead of the Aug. 4 primary, as well as “too radical” for the Senate. 

The Democratic primary has become essentially a two-person race after state Sen. Mallory McMorrow ended her bid over the weekend. Talking to MS NOW, El-Sayed criticized Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, who is supporting Stevens, and dismissed the political labels that have played a defining role in the race. 

“I’m not a socialist, but I also reject that framing of moderate versus progressive,” El-Sayed said. “I don’t know what those words mean anymore. I think there is a political system that has been locking people out for a very long time, and there are some of us who want to unlock that system for people.” 

What happens in Michigan could carry major influence into the next presidential election, a likelihood that isn’t lost on El-Sayed. His race is one of the biggest tests this year on whether someone from the farther left wing of the Democratic Party can win in a political battleground state. 

“If the kind of politics that can be about unlocking our political system for everyday people can win in Michigan, it’s going to send shockwaves through the party,” he said. “Because here in Michigan everybody has to pay attention …. everybody who is planning to run for president in 2028 is going to have to pay attention to this race.” 

Emily Gold contributed to this article. 

The post Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed says Platner should resign appeared first on MS NOW.

Author: Source Author

From MS Now.