An Oxford graduate has become the first Muslim to serve as a US senator after winning the closely watched Michigan race during this week’s midterm elections.
Abdul El-Sayed was elected as a US state senator for Michigan while Democrats across the country took control of Congress, ending Republican rule as voters opposed President Donald Trump’s party during the final years of his administration.
The result formed part of a series of historic victories.
Democrats also brought three Black women into the Senate for the first time, elected a Native American woman as the chamber’s first senator from that background and secured the election of the first openly gay male US senator.
El-Sayed’s success represents another major first in the representation of religious minorities.
The 42-year-old doctor matriculated at Oriel College, University of Oxford, in 2009 and later earned a doctorate in Public Health.
Lord Mendoza, the college’s Provost, congratulated El-Sayed and said the institution had followed the Michigan Senate contest closely.
He described the election of an alumnus to public office as a source of pride and wished the senator-elect continued success.
El-Sayed faced Republican candidate Mike Rogers in a race that attracted considerable attention.
The senator-elect received 52.5 per cent of the vote, while Rogers secured 45.5 per cent.
Election-night returns were counted in Detroit on Wednesday, November 4.
Trump and Vice President JD Vance led what the report described as a largely Islamophobic campaign against El-Sayed.
The president claimed that his opponent was a jihadist and said he would have to pass through a metal detector before entering the Senate.
In his victory speech, El-Sayed thanked voters for backing what he described as an unlikely candidate.
He also recognised the welcome he received from people in their homes, churches and synagogues.