Democrat Abbas Alawieh led Republican Harry Sawicki and Working Class Party candidate Larry Darnell Betts in Michigan’s Senate District 2 race Wednesday morning, according to Wayne County’s unofficial election results.

As of the county’s 8:31 a.m. EST update Nov. 4, Alawieh had 72,311 votes, or 70.50%, compared with Sawicki’s 27,250 votes, or 26.57%. Betts had 2,743 votes, or 2.67%.

All 89 district precincts were reporting, but additional ballots may remain to be counted. These unofficial totals do not establish a winner.

District 2 covers Dearborn, Dearborn Heights, Allen Park and Melvindale, along with parts of Taylor and Detroit, according to Alawieh’s campaign website.

Michigan Senate District 2 results

The following totals reflect Wayne County’s report updated at 8:31:15 a.m. EST Nov. 4:

Candidate or vote category

Party

Votes

Percentage

Abbas Alawieh

Democratic

72,311

70.50%

Harry Sawicki

Republican

27,250

26.57%

Larry Darnell Betts

Working Class

2,743

2.67%

Write-in

—

266

0.26%

Total


102,570

100.00%

Alawieh led Sawicki by 45,061 votes in that update.

The county listed 89 of 89 precincts reporting for this contest. The countywide figure of 757 of 770 precincts describes reporting across Wayne County, rather than this race alone.

The open seat

The candidates are competing to succeed Democratic state Sen. Sylvia Santana, who is term-limited.

Santana will have completed two Senate terms and one House term by the end of 2026, totaling 10 years, according to her service record.

Michigan’s constitutional term limits, amended by voters in 2022, generally prohibit election to legislative terms totaling more than 12 years. Another four-year Senate term would exceed that limit, under Article IV, Section 54.

The Detroit Regional Chamber describes District 2 as strongly Democratic.

The candidates

Alawieh, a Dearborn resident, won the Aug. 4 Democratic primary over state Rep. Erin Byrnes with roughly 59% of the vote to Byrnes’ 41%, according to WDIV election results.

In [responses to The Arab American News](https://arabamericannews.com/2026/07/24/meet-the-democratic-candidates-for-michigans-second-senate-district-