Trump Calls El-Sayed a 'Jihadist' in Michigan Senate Race

President Donald Trump used Truth Social on Sunday to brand Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan's Democratic Senate nominee, a "Muslim Brotherhood Jihadist, who hates Jews and Blacks and AMERICANS and TRUMP." The post offered no evidence for any of the accusations. El-Sayed has repeatedly denied any tie to the Muslim Brotherhood.

The outcome matters well beyond Michigan. On November 3, El-Sayed faces Republican Mike Rogers, who previously served in Congress and has Trump's endorsement. The two are competing for the seat that Democrat Gary Peters is vacating as he retires, and the result will help decide which party controls the Senate. If El-Sayed wins, he would be the first Muslim elected to the chamber.

Trump aimed the post at Barack Obama, who campaigned for El-Sayed in Detroit on Saturday. Matzav reported that more than 4,300 people attended that rally at Cass Technical High School. Trump opened by declaring that "Obama was a grossly incompetent President!" In the same post, he called El-Sayed a "Fake Doctor" and alleged that he runs the worst clinic in the country. El-Sayed is a physician who previously served as Detroit's health director.

Rogers has made the same link throughout the campaign. Republicans cite El-Sayed's support for a 2012 statement concerning Mohamed Morsi, then Egypt's president, who was affiliated with the Brotherhood.

El-Sayed has called it "shameful" for Rogers to question his allegiance to the United States. "I'm proud of our Constitution that guarantees all of us the right to pray as we choose to pray," he said during their final debate. Obama framed the attacks as a tactic he knew personally. "We have seen this movie before. I starred in it," he said.

El-Sayed has also drawn criticism for his own rhetoric. Ynet reported that after an attack on a synagogue in the Detroit area, he said "hurt people hurt people." He later apologized. "To anyone who feels like my comments might have been hurtful, I'm really sorry," El-Sayed said. "That was not my intention."

In 2022, El-Sayed told CAIR's Oklahoma chapter that opposition to Sharia law in American courts cannot be understood apart from historical injustices such as the Trail of Tears.