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American Arab and Muslim candidates achieved remarkable electoral gains in the midterm elections that took place on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, in results that indicate the expansion of their presence in American political life, and highlight the ability of candidates belonging to religious and ethnic minorities to gain the support of broader segments of society.
According to the results announced as of Thursday, November 5, seven Muslim candidates won seats in Congress, including six in the House of Representatives and one in the Senate, the largest number of Muslims elected to Congress in a single ballot.
The most prominent of these results came in the state of Michigan, where Democrat Abdel Rahman Mohamed El-Sayed, known in the media as Abdel El-Sayed, an American of Egyptian descent, won a seat in the Senate, becoming the first Muslim to be elected to the Senate in the history of the United States.
American surgeon of Egyptian descent Adam Hamwy also won the 12th District seat in New Jersey, becoming the first Muslim to represent the state in Congress.
Hamwi gained media attention after volunteering to treat war-wounded people in Gaza in 2024, in addition to his previous service as a military doctor in the US Army.
Darialisa Avila Chevalier, a Muslim of Dominican origins, also won the 13th District seat in New York, becoming the first Muslim woman of Latin origin to be elected to Congress.
Four Muslim representatives retained their seats: Rashida Tlaib, an American of Palestinian origin, for the twelfth district in Michigan, Ilhan Omar, an American of Somali origin, for the fifth district in Minnesota, Andre Carson for the seventh district in Indiana, and Latifa Simon for the twelfth district in California.
Non-Muslim Arab Americans also won, including Republican Darren LaHood, of Lebanese origin, who retained his seat in Illinois, and Democrat Dan Coe, of a Korean father and Lebanese mother, who won a seat in the House of Representatives from Massachusetts.
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A number of Arab and Muslim Americans also succeeded in winning seats in state legislative assemblies, including Abeer Qawwas, an American of Palestinian origins, in the New York State Senate, Abbas Alawiyah, an American of Lebanese origins, in the Michigan Senate, and Rawa Rumman, an American of Palestinian origins, in the Georgia Senate.
Nabila Syed, a Muslim of Indian origin, won a seat in the Illinois Senate, after defeating her Republican rival.
Electoral gains despite controversy over identity and religion
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These results gain particular importance in light of the escalation of anti-Muslim rhetoric during recent election campaigns, especially in the race for the Senate seat in Michigan.
Abdul Rahman Al-Sayyed was subjected to attacks from US President Donald Trump, his vice president, J.D. Vance, and a number of Republicans, which included accusations that he had links to extremist groups, accusations that Al-Sayyid denied, and no evidence has emerged to prove them.
In a speech he delivered after announcing his victory, Al-Sayed said, addressing his Republican rival, Mike Rogers: “You chose hate, and Michigan chose hope.”
Al-Sayed considered that the election results showed voters' rejection of a campaign that focused on his name and religion, instead of the issues that concern American voters.
Al-Sayed stressed that he was not running to be the first Muslim senator, but rather to be “the next senator from the state of Michigan, who happens to be a Muslim.”
In New Jersey, Adam Hamwi addressed in his victory speech the controversy related to religious identity, and the attack he and his family were subjected to because of their religious affiliation.
Hamwi gained media attention after volunteering to treat war-wounded people in Gaza in 2024, in addition to his previous service as a military doctor in the US Army.
Hamwi directed his speech to American Muslim children, saying: “For every Muslim child who is told that you do not belong, you belong, this is your country.”
Hamwi stressed that "hatred may be loud, but it is not the majority."
As for Ilhan Omar, she thanked the voters of Minnesota after winning a fifth term, saying: “I feel very grateful to continue representing you in the House of Representatives with a strong mandate. We will not allow Trump to silence us.”
In New York, Abeer Qawwas, who became the first Palestinian-American Muslim woman to be elected to the state legislature, celebrated by publishing a message on the “X” platform in which she said: “We have made history.”
What factors helped these candidates win?
The success of the winning Arab and Muslim American candidates is linked to several political and electoral factors, including the momentum achieved by the Democratic Party in the midterm elections, and the focus of the election campaigns on economic and social issues that gained the attention of the American voter.
Abdel Rahman Al-Sayyed focused his campaign on rising costs of living, health care, and limiting the influence and money of big corporations and lobbyists in politics, issues that transcend the religious and ethnic affiliations of voters.
Reuters quoted voters in the state of Michigan as saying that concerns about the economy and the cost of life were "more important to them than attacks targeting Al-Sayyed's religious identity."
The majority of these election winners also ran intensive campaigns that relied heavily on direct communication with voters, and not limited to propaganda campaigns.
These elections also witnessed an increase in the number of American candidates of Arab and Muslim origins.
According to data reported by the American Religious News Agency from the Council on American-Islamic Relations, more than 160 Muslim candidates ran in elections at various levels this year, compared to about 145 candidates in the 2022 elections.
This increase reflects an increase in demand for candidacy for public office, in parallel with the activity of organizations concerned with registering and mobilizing voters and encouraging political participation.
Some believe that the attacks on some Muslim and Arab candidates prompted sectors of the Arab and Muslim community to participate extensively in voting.
The results raise questions about the extent to which these winners are able to transform their electoral success into actual influence in American policies, whether internally in the files of immigration, civil rights, and health care, or in foreign policy.
It also raises questions about whether these gains represent the beginning of a more widespread and sustainable political presence for Americans of Arab and Muslim descent, or whether they are more related to the political circumstances of the 2026 midterm elections.
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