HOLLAND — West Michiganders packed into 205 Coffee Bar on June 13 to hear from U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.
El-Sayed, a Democrat, was joined during the townhall-style meet-and-greet by Holland Councilmember Tim Marroquin, who has endorsed his campaign. Also in attendance were former county commissioner and state senate candidate Chris Kleinjans and state representative candidate Joseph McClusky.
“This isn’t a campaign for one candidate. It’s not even a campaign for one seat. This is a campaign for the kind of democracy we really believe in,” El-Sayed said. “One where we move past the dominance of big corporations. Where we decide we are going to take our government back and deliver it for the people who deserve so much better.”
El-Sayed, originally from Southeast Michigan, is a graduate of U of M. He’s also earned a medical degree from Columbia University and a second doctorate from Oxford University. He ran for governor of Michigan in 2018.
“You can be in a coffee shop in Holland, a living room in Grand Rapids, a public library in Alcona, you could be in a church in Detroit, you could be at a VFW Hall in Escanaba,” El-Sayed said. “It does not matter. People say the same things. We want for the same things.”
What did West Michiganders ask El-Sayed?
El-Sayed took four questions from residents during his visit, ranging from data centers to how he would act in office.
El-Sayed advocated for a federal policy for data centers that he called “Terms of Engagement.” The terms would require closed-loop systems, no increases to ratepayer fees, a requirement that participating utilities use revenue to improve reliability, that added jobs should be “good union jobs,” a community benefits agreement with money provided in advance, and a system of fees and penalties if those terms aren’t followed.
“I’m the only candidate running who has never taken a check from a utility,” El-Sayed said. “I’m the only candidate running who has never taken a check from big tech. So, I’m the only candidate running who actually is willing to enforce any of this.”
Another resident asked how El-Sayed plans to win the statewide race.
“I know that Michiganders are truly open-minded and big-hearted,” El-Sayed said. “I know that if you’re willing to go and have a honest conversation with folks, they will judge you on the content of your character, not your name.”
If he wins the primary against Mallory McMorrow and Haley Stevens in August, El-Sayed will face incumbent Republican Mike Rogers in November.
“(Republicans) are used to running against Democrats who don’t have a counterpunch,” El-Sayed said. “I’m the best counter-puncher in the game. … We play to win and it’s about damn time that Democrats decided that we are going to play to win.”
El-Sayed said, if elected, he would spend two years “throwing sand in the gears” for President Donald Trump and working to install Medicare for all. He said the statewide race could have an impact on the presidential primary for Democrats.
“If we win here in Michigan, we will have busted open what it looks like to run and win in the blue wall,” he said. “… My job is to keep moving the conversation about Medicare for all … (about keeping) money out of politics … about a foreign policy that puts human rights first and (to) make sure we get a president that wants the same thing.”
— Cassidey Kavathas is the politics and court reporter at The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at ckavathas@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on X @cassideykava.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: ‘We play to win’ Senate candidate El-Sayed talks big tech in Holland
Reporting by Cassidey Kavathas, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Cassidey Kavathas, Holland Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
