At the White House South Lawn on Friday, President Donald Trump slammed Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El‑Sayed, calling him a jihadist and accusing him of ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. Trump said he could "talk about a man who is a Muslim Brotherhood person, who is a jihadist, and who can’t be in our Senate." He urged reporters to examine El‑Sayed’s past remarks, but offered no documents or specific statements to back the claim.
El‑Sayed, the former Detroit police chief elected to the U.S. House in 2016, has repeatedly denied any affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood, a designation the U.S. State Department has loosely applied to a political organization in Egypt. The Michigan Senate race, which will decide a seat in the 117th Congress, is already a battleground for control of the chamber as Republicans seek to hold their narrow majority.
Trump also pledged support for fellow Republican Mike Rogers, who will face El‑Sayed in the November contest. "Mike Rogers will be a great senator," Trump said before announcing his visit to Michigan next week, a stop he said would draw significant attention.
The former president’s remarks come amid heightened scrutiny of candidates’ foreign ties and have prompted Republicans to rally around Rogers, while Democrats in Michigan have called the statements "unfounded and divisive." The Michigan campaign will likely intensify as the midterm deadline approaches.
The next week will see Trump’s Michigan rally in Ann Arbor, where he is expected to repeat his accusations and outline his vision for the Senate. El‑Sayed’s campaign has pledged to counter the claims with evidence showing his commitment to U.S. values.