Iowa Politics with Jeff Stein -- Fri. Aug. 07, 2026

Michigan's Impact.

I'm Jeff Stein with today's Iowa Politics Report.

It was certainly a good night for socialists in Michigan this past Tuesday securing primary wins in key races for U.S.

Senate and U.S.

House.

In the wake of other socialist wins in Democrat primaries and regional elections the last few months, it's fair for folks to pay attention and be concerned.

But let's put a bit of context into it.

Yes, Abdul El Sayed won the Democrat nomination for the open U.S.

Senate seat.

However, polling suggested he'd win by 11 points.

Instead, he won by a single percentage point.

Further, he did not even get a majority of the vote in the three candidate race, meaning that more people who showed up to vote in the Michigan Democrat primary voted for someone else

then voted for him.

Let's take that even further.

Only 13% of Michigan voters took part in the primary at all, and primary voters regardless of the state or party are typically to the farther end of the political spectrum.

So yes, he won.

That is far better than losing from a candidate's perspective.

But the number of people who actually took a stand in favor of him was rather small relative to the whole.

And this is from a state that has elected Democrats to the U.S.

Senate consistently for decades.

The closest a Republican has even come during that time was two years ago, 2024, when Mike Rogers lost by only three tenths of a percentage point.

That's by far the best showing by the GOP in those decades.

Rogers is the GOP nominee again this cycle.

Granted, Rogers likely benefited from Donald Trump being on the ballot and winning Michigan two years ago, but narrowly winning a partisan primary as El Sayed did is far different from winning a general election and the socialist Democrat has plenty of work cut out for him between now and November.

Remember, too, that this is an open seat currently held by a Democrat.

If that party wants to retake majority control of the chamber, they need to hold onto seats in places like Michigan.

And even if they do, in this case, it's not a loss of a seat on the scorecard for Republicans who still hold the majority.

Meanwhile, socialists failed in Democrat primaries in Missouri and Virginia.

We heard a lot about them winning in Michigan, but very little about their losses in those two states, such as the nature of the formerly mainstream media these days.

The bottom line is it's certainly something to watch this remaking of the Democrat Party, but it's hardly a mandate and certainly something that Republicans as well as more mainstream Democrats can take action by voting to avoid.

And that's the Iowa Politics Report for Friday, August 7.

On Twitter, Instagram, Gitter, Threads and Truth Social at Iowa Politics.

I'm Jeff Stein on News Talk 1540, KXEL.