Michigan Senate Nominee El-Sayed Faces Loyalty Questions, Israel Stance

Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed faced scrutiny over his Muslim faith and alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, leading to heated exchanges at a town hall.

El-Sayed denounced the Muslim Brotherhood this weekend, first in an exchange with a voter and later with reporters. Republicans have sought to highlight his family’s ties to the group and his past comments about it. El-Sayed stated that Republicans are trying to cast him as sympathetic to interests connected to Islamic terror and are unfairly accusing him of dual loyalties, similar to what former Presidents John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama faced.

President Donald Trump referred to El-Sayed as "Mohammed" and falsely declared him a jihadist at a campaign rally on Friday night. El-Sayed is doubling down on his view that Israel is not a US ally as the November 3 midterm elections approach. El-Sayed referenced Israel’s reported lobbying of the United States to enter into a war with Iran.

El-Sayed stated he would continue to question Israel's ally status regardless of the outcome of Israel’s election on October 27. He accused the Israeli military of heinous things, like heinous things, full war crimes, genocide. El-Sayed previously affirmed his view on Israel in his first debate with Republican opponent Mike Rogers on October 8. Lon Johnson, former chair of the Michigan Democratic Party, and David Kramer, a longtime Democratic strategist, stated they would not vote for El-Sayed in an op-ed in the Detroit News.

They cited gravest concerns about El-Sayed's associations with figures who have excused or minimized terrorism, his reluctance to unequivocally condemn dangerous rhetoric, and his support of extreme policies. Johnson and Kramer took issue with El-Sayed's refusal during the October 8 debate to identify whether Iran or Israel posed the greater threat to America.