{
  "id": 17845754,
  "title": "Abdul El-Sayed Tests the Limits of Islamophobia in Michigan",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/02/abdul-el-sayed-tests-the-limits-of-islamophobia-in-michigan",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-11-02T19:35:24.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Intercept",
    "slug": "the-intercept",
    "url": "https://theintercept.com/2026/11/02/michigan-el-sayed-rogers-muslim-islamophobia/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for the Michigan Senate, is battling a wave of bigoted attacks over his race and religion as the midterms draw to a close. President Donald Trump called him a \"jihadist,\" while Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made racist remarks against Arabs. One mailer even placed El-Sayed's face next to the Twin Towers, according to Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, who criticized the campaign as \"the most bigoted, hateful, Islamophobic campaign I've ever seen.\"\n\nMcMorrow, a former Democratic Senate nominee who dropped out before the August primary, is taking a different approach to the race, while Rep. Haley Stevens, the primary runner-up, has spent the final days of the campaign painting El-Sayed as an angry antisemite and even endorsed Republican contender Mike Rogers. The Islamophobic attacks have shifted the focus from accusations of antisemitism, which have been primarily leveled by Stevens, to El-Sayed's Muslim identity.\n\nRecent polls show that 38 percent of Michigan voters would be less likely to vote for a Muslim candidate. However, Muslim and Arab organizers in Michigan are not backing down. Layla Elabed, the organizing director at Arab Americans for Progress, expressed excitement over the opportunity to vote for El-Sayed, who would be the first Muslim in the U.S. Senate. Elabed's recent group, an evolution of the Uncommitted movement, is working to mobilize Muslim and Arab voters in Dearborn, a key target for El-Sayed's campaign.\n\nElabed believes that the same coalition that supported the Uncommitted movement could help El-Sayed win the election. She emphasizes El-Sayed's stance on issues important to anti-war and anti-genocide voters. Multiple groups, including the Arab American Political Action Committee, have endorsed El-Sayed, noting his potential to break barriers for Arab and Muslim communities. While Islamophobic attacks aim to sway voter sentiment, they may also mobilize targeted communities to cast their ballots, according to Nazita Lajevardi, an associate professor of political science at the University of Michigan.",
  "summary": "As the Michigan Senate race finishes with a focus on the Democratic primary loser’s gripes over Israel, the party nominee has endured a barrage of anti-Muslim attacks. The post Abdul El-Sayed Tests the Limits of Islamophobia in Michigan appeared first on The Intercept .",
  "key_points": [
    "Abdul El-Sayed faces Islamophobic attacks due to his race and religion.",
    "President Trump called him a jihadist, and a mailer placed his face next to the Twin Towers.",
    "38% of Michigan voters would be less likely to vote for a Muslim candidate."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}