Michigan Senate Race Ends With Dispute Over Abdul El-Sayed's Faith, Ties and Israel Stance

Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for a U.S. Senate seat in Michigan, faces Republican Mike Rogers in Tuesday's election. If he wins, he would become the first Muslim in the U.S. Senate. In the final stretch, the race has been dominated by arguments over El-Sayed's religion, his alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and his positions on Israel. President Donald Trump called him a "jihadist," and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made remarks about Arabs. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow, who dropped out of the Democratic primary before August, said a mailer put El-Sayed's face beside the Twin Towers and called the campaign the most bigoted she had seen. Rep. Haley Stevens, the primary runner-up, has portrayed El-Sayed as antisemitic and on Sunday endorsed Rogers. Rogers has tried to link El-Sayed to the Muslim Brotherhood but says the attacks are not about faith.

Right-leaning outlets lead with claims about El-Sayed and his supporters. The Blaze reports that a former New York Times op-ed contributor, described as a Muslim pundit, is being mocked for promising a "reckoning" if El-Sayed loses, and also if he wins. Townhall features Dalia Ziada of the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, who told i24News that El-Sayed advances the Muslim Brotherhood's goals while appearing secular, and says he has ties he has downplayed or denied. Neither excerpt mentions the Islamophobia accusations. The Intercept, an alternative outlet, takes a distinct angle: it centers the attacks on El-Sayed's race and religion, quoting McMorrow, and notes Rogers denies a faith motive. It also says Stevens's antisemitism claims have overtaken those attacks. Left-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while alternative and right-leaning outlets had. The right and alternative coverage agree that the Brotherhood and Israel issues are central to the closing days, but they differ over whether the scrutiny is legitimate or bigoted.