YPSILANTI, Michigan (JTA) — When Spencer Lucker saw the notification that Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary had been called for Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive who spent much of his campaign attacking AIPAC and Israel, it felt like a gut punch.

“I have a really hard time grasping that this is the Democratic Party that I’ve always supported and been a part of,” said Lucker, a 38-year-old Huntington Woods, Michigan, resident who backed US Rep. Haley Stevens in the primary.

As Lucker absorbed the results Wednesday following an election night that saw El-Sayed eke out a win against Stevens by 48.5% to 47.5%, he said the narrow margin offered a small measure of assurance even as it did little to ease his concerns about the nominee.

“There is some relief and hope in however many people voted for her,” Lucker said. “But the margin doesn’t matter in the end.”

El-Sayed’s unexpectedly narrow margin — polls had shown him with a commanding lead in the days before the primary — has allowed some of his critics to tout a silver lining, with Jewish leaders saying the close result proves that many Michigan voters do not embrace his anti-Israel politics.

“The lesson from Tuesday’s results is twofold: There is clearly strong anti-establishment energy this cycle, but no one should count pro-Israel Democrats out,” said Brian Romick, the president of the Democratic Majority for Israel PAC. “While El-Sayed’s razor-thin victory in Michigan is disappointing, it was hardly the sweeping triumph he predicted or a mandate for his views.”

Halie Soifer, the CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, which backed Stevens, said in a statement, “While we are disappointed in the final result of the Michigan Senate race, the razor-thin margin isn’t the resounding win for the far-left that was predicted.”

Now, as El-Sayed is set to face off against Republican Mike Rogers, a former congressman, in November, the debate has turned to whether his narrow margin of victory on Tuesday portends a Democratic loss in a crucial battleground state.

While recent polling conducted prior to Tuesday’s primary showed Rogers with a slight lead over El-Sayed, Josh Pasek, a professor of communication and media and political science at the University of Michigan, cautioned against reading the primary margin as a measure of El-Sayed’s general election prospects.

“I mean, disappointment matters. It hits enthusiasm for people who support one candidate versus another,” said Pasek, who is Jewish and has previously been involved in Democratic politics. “But the real question is how does the party, how do the candidates, and how do the supporters, respond to whatever happens next?”

Since his victory, El-Sayed has drawn endorsements from Stevens as well as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who had backed Stevens in the primary. Former vice president Kamala Harris also sent a plea to donors on Wednesday asking them to help fund........

© The Times of Israel