Key facts
- Habibi PAC is a leadership PAC, a committee not connected to El-Sayed's campaign, per FEC filings.
- The committee is meant to raise money for El-Sayed's political allies, the report said.
- El-Sayed used the Arabic term habibi, meaning my beloved, to address opponents after his win.
- El-Sayed ran as the first Muslim candidate elected to the US Senate, the report said.
Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-Mich.) has launched Habibi PAC, his own political action committee, Federal Election Commission filings show, the Hill reported on November 6, 2026. The leadership PAC is a committee not connected to his campaign and is meant to raise money for his political allies.
The launch came days after El-Sayed won his Senate race by a wide margin on November 3, 2026, in a swing state. The report described the committee as a sign that El-Sayed aims to influence Democratic politics beyond his own race.
El-Sayed has used the word habibi, an Arabic term of endearment meaning my beloved but often used more casually, to address his opponents since the win. In his victory speech he addressed Vice President JD Vance, saying: "JD, habibi. There is this delicious irony in the fact that you're constitutionally obligated to swear me in in January."
Arabic terminology and culture featured throughout the campaign, with supporters often wearing Habibi for Abdul shirts. El-Sayed ran as an unapologetic Muslim with strong views against sending military aid to Israel, and aired an ad emphasizing his faith and his mission "to serve God and to serve our neighbors."
President Trump often called El-Sayed a jihadist and misstated his name, the report said. Former Rep. Mike Rogers (Mich.), the Republican candidate, often attempted to tie El-Sayed to extremist organizations to which El-Sayed has no connection, according to the report.