First Muslim US senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed launches ‘Habibi PAC’ after railing against money in politics

Abdul El-Sayed, the Michigan senator-elect who campaigned on reducing the influence of money in politics, has registered a political action committee days after becoming the first Muslim elected to the US Senate.Named “Habibi PAC”, the committee was registered with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday as a leadership PAC sponsored by El-Sayed, according to Al Jazeera.

Such committees allow politicians to raise money independently of their election campaigns and use it to support other candidates, political organisations and activities.The registration comes after El-Sayed used his victory speech to argue that ordinary voters could overcome the influence of wealthy interests.

“The many can win,” he said, describing the outcome as a contest between money and the people.The name of the new committee reflects a phrase that became familiar during his campaign.