Abdul El-Sayed’s Socialism by Another Name

Abdul El-Sayed would like voters to know that he is not a socialist.

The Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan made that clear during a July debate. “When it comes to the question of socialism, I’m not a socialist,” he said.

Fair enough.

But what a politician calls himself matters far less than what he wants to do.

And when you look at El-Sayed’s platform, it is difficult to miss how much of it overlaps with the agenda of the socialist Left.

That matters because El-Sayed is not running for city council in Detroit. He is seeking a Senate seat in one of the country’s most important swing states, where he will face Republican Mike Rogers in November.

His candidacy has also drawn support from some of the most prominent figures on the far-left wing of the Democrat Party. Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed him, while Zohran Mamdani publicly congratulated him after his primary victory.

The New York mayor won while openly identifying as a Democratic Socialist. But El-Sayed may be offering the left a different formula: keep much of the agenda while concealing the socialist label.

Consider what he is proposing.

El-Sayed supports Medicare for All, with universal coverage and no premiums, copayments, or deductibles. He backs a wealth tax on fortunes above $1 billion, higher taxes on high earners, and greater power for unions.

His agenda also includes abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and eliminating the Senate filibuster, along with major changes to the Supreme Court. His campaign lists all of these among its priorities.

The commonalities with the Democratic Socialists of America’s program are hardly confined to one or two issues. Healthcare for all, aggressive wealth taxes, expanded union power, and abolishing ICE are all explicit parts of the DSA’s national program.

And then there is public ownership.

The DSA calls for government ownership of the largest corporations and essential industries to ensure what it terms “democratic control.”

El-Sayed has taken that idea into one of the most important industries of the future: artificial intelligence.

In June, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., introduced legislation that would give the public a 50% ownership stake in the country’s largest AI companies. The fund would hold voting shares, allowing a government-appointed commission to participate directly in corporate decision-making.

El-Sayed wants to go even further.

“I agree that we need public ownership,” he said in a podcast interview, “but I also agree that we need some system of public control.”

Read that again: public ownership and public control.

If that’s not socialism, what is?

Later that month, El-Sayed unveiled his own “AI Under Democracy” plan, calling for “democratic ownership and governance” of the technology. His campaign explicitly described him as the first Senate candidate to propose public control of AI.

Nor does the resemblance end with economics.

The DSA’s ambitions extend to the structure of American government itself. Its national program calls for abolishing the Senate and replacing the presidency and Supreme Court with an executive and judiciary chosen by and subordinate to Congress.

El-Sayed’s proposals are not as far-reaching, but his platform nevertheless calls for abolishing the filibuster and reforming the Supreme Court.

Taken issue by issue, the pattern is hard to dismiss.

Universal government health coverage. Wealth taxes. Greater union power. Abolishing ICE. Structural changes to the Senate and Supreme Court. And now public ownership and control of AI.

These are not obscure similarities buried in policy white papers. They include some of the central priorities on which El-Sayed has chosen to campaign.

Which brings us back to how El-Sayed began.

“When it comes to the question of socialism, I’m not a socialist.”

Perhaps.

Mamdani at least made his ideology explicit. He ran openly as a democratic socialist and allowed voters to judge the label along with the policies.

El-Sayed offers a different model. He claims to reject the socialist label even as major elements of his platform track closely with the program of the DSA.

And that is what makes his candidacy all the more devious and dangerous.

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