OAK PARK, Michigan (JTA) – Working as a morning producer for Detroit’s Local 4 television station, Noelle Gray has had a front-row seat to the flood of political advertising in Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary.

Amid the barrage, one thing stood out to her: how much money the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC was pouring into the race between US Rep. Haley Stevens, a pro-Israel moderate, and former county health official Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive and harsh Israel critic.

“It concerns me a little bit because it makes me a little leery of foreign interests being infiltrated into the state of Michigan,” said Gray, 27, who on Sunday stopped by her polling place in the Detroit suburb of Oak Park to vote early. “I want to support somebody who is for the state of Michigan. I love Michigan. Born and raised here my entire life, and it worries me on corporate and international interests. Are you really focused on Michiganders?”

Ultimately, Gray said, spending by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s affiliated super PAC did not drive her vote. She voted for El-Sayed because of her concerns about data centers and ICE, the immigration enforcement agency that has been at the front of a nationwide crackdown.

“I would hope putting someone in the position of our Senate will represent our interests, keep us safe, but also protect the people who are here,” Gray said of her decision.

But the lobby has become nearly impossible to miss in the race. AIPAC’s super PAC has spent over $30 million to support Stevens’ campaign, toppling its previous record in a bid to prevent one of its most vocal Democratic critics, El-Sayed, from reaching the Senate.

El-Sayed, who is currently leading Stevens by as much as 16 points in recent polling, has made opposition to the group, and to Israel, a defining feature of his campaign, inveighing against AIPAC in the debates ahead of Tuesday’s primary and in his attack ads against Stevens. “AIPAC is perfectly fine with either Congresswoman Stevens or Mike Rogers,” El-Sayed wrote in a post on X earlier this month, referring to the Republican Senate nominee. “If either of them win, Israel wins.”

Polling in Michigan suggests widespread opposition to AIPAC among Democratic voters. A survey conducted earlier this month of 500 likely Michigan Democratic primary voters on behalf of Detroit News/WDIV-TV found that 49% have an unfavorable opinion of AIPAC, while 12% view AIPAC favorably, and 39% were neutral. An April poll conducted by Data for Progress for Zeteo and Drop Site News, two outlets that prominently feature criticism of Israel, found that 64% of likely Democratic primary voters said they are less likely to support a Senate candidate who receives AIPAC donations.

But Josh Pasek, a professor of communication and media and political science at the University of Michigan, said that he did not think the “bulk of voters” in the state were voting primarily based on issues concerning Israel and AIPAC.

“I think most people care a whole lot more about substantive issues,” Pasek said. He added,........

© The Times of Israel