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Archive photo · 16 November 2011Abdul El-Sayed Pushes Back on Islamophobia as Religion Becomes Flashpoint in Michigan Senate Race
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Islamophobia rhetoric is prominent in Michigan Senate race, with faith becoming campaign weapon. Abdul El-Sayed pushes back against attacks on his Muslim faith during campaign.
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Religion turns campaign flashpoint
Democratic Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed pushed back against attacks over his Muslim faith as religion became a campaign issue in Michigan’s tight Senate race, with Al Jazeera speaking to him in Wyandotte ahead of the November 3 vote.
CBS News said El-Sayed stopped in Wyandotte on Wednesday for a canvass launch where supporters prepared to go door-to-door and speak with voters, and the event also drew hecklers.
President Trump questioned El-Sayed's alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, a claim El-Sayed denies, while U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell told the crowd, "Or calling people terrorists. The only terrorist in this country is in the White House right now,".
El-Sayed also argued that federal tax dollars should be spent on domestic needs, including schools, rather than military operations overseas, saying, "I want our tax dollars spent here, right to build schools, rather than sent abroad to drop bombs on anyone,".
Faith, safety, and voting
Jason Turkish, the fiancé of former Democratic Senate hopeful Haley Stevens, said he plans to vote for Republican Mike Rogers over Democrat Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan Senate midterm election.
Turkish told the Detroit News, "Every time he talks about genocide, Jews get death threats," and he also said he has seen an escalation in El-Sayed’s rhetoric since the primary.
El-Sayed responded to Turkish’s announcement by saying, "To me, this election is about control of the United States Senate," and he added that it is about putting a check on Donald Trump.
BlackPressUSA reported that faith leaders gathered inside the downtown Detroit United Methodist Church to oppose Islamophobic rhetoric ramped up ahead of the Nov. 3 general election, and Rev. Paul Perez said, "In the final weeks of Michigan’s U.S. Senate race, we have watched religious identity used as a weapon."
Polls, money, and what’s at stake
Newsweek said some Michigan voters who helped return President Donald Trump to the White House in 2024 plan to vote for Democrat Abdul El-Sayed for U.S. Senate, describing it as a crack in the president's coalition that could matter in a race most polls show is separated by a few points.
Newsweek cited a Glengariff Group survey of 600 likely voters for The Detroit News and WDIV-TV from October 19-22 that found El-Sayed ahead 51 percent to 45 percent, with four percent undecided.
Newsweek also reported that donors in Dearborn and Dearborn Heights gave El-Sayed about $131,000 in itemized contributions from mid-July through September from 212 people, while Rogers listed 11 donors from the same two cities who gave him about $9,100.
BlackPressUSA said Imam Steve Mustapha Elturk of Warren’s Islamic Organization of North America told the press conference, "When a person’s faith is treated as evidence for disloyalty, every Muslim family hears that message," as the race’s outcome could determine which party controls the U.S. Senate and which federal judicial nominees advance.