Full Breakdown
Abdul El-Sayed’s Denial of Muslim Brotherhood Ties Faces Scrutiny in Michigan Senate Race
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Meet-the-Press Denial Meets Half-Sister’s Social-Media Claims
During an appearance on NBC’s *Meet the Press*, Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed was asked repeatedly whether he or his family had any connections to the Muslim Brotherhood. He answered “No” each time. In contrast, his half-sister Eman Abdelhadi, an assistant professor at the University of Chicago, posted earlier social-media entries stating that their mother was an activist in the Brotherhood and that family members had been jailed for membership.
Background & Context
The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, was designated a “Global Terrorist” by the U.S. Department of State earlier this year because of its financial support for Hamas. El-Sayed’s mother, Fatten Elkomy, emigrated from Egypt in the late 1970s and at one point worked for the Islamic American Relief Agency, which the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned in 2004 for funding al-Qaeda. After divorcing El-Sayed’s father in the mid-1980s, Elkomy remarried Abdelhadi’s Palestinian father.
El-Sayed himself signed an open letter in 2012, alongside other Egyptian-American leaders, urging the Muslim Brotherhood to “purge the media and police” following the election of Brotherhood leader Mohamed Morsi as Egypt’s president.
Data & Statistics
- June 24, 2012 – Abdelhadi posted: “Had an amazing talk with my mom about her activism in the Muslim Brotherhood during the early 70s while she was in college #respect.”
These posts were uncovered by the Washington Free Beacon and cited by multiple outlets.
Official Statements & Responses
- El-Sayed reiterated his denial, telling moderator Kristen Welker that neither he nor his family have ties to the Brotherhood.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
- **Denial vs.
- Verification: The sister’s posts are the sole public evidence of family involvement; no independent investigation or court finding has confirmed the claims.
- Personal Contact: Sources do not establish whether El-Sayed has ever met the Brotherhood relatives described by his sister.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Had an amazing talk with my mom about her activism in the Muslim Brotherhood during the early 70s while she was in college #respect,” — Eman Abdelhadi, of chicago professor
- “You don’t have any ties, and your family doesn’t?” — Kristen Welker
- “I carry dual citizenship, and I grew up spending most of my summers in another country where I understood what it meant not to have the right to self-govern,” — Abdul El-Sayed
- “Any organization engaged in political violence or calling for political violence is engaged in terrorism,” — Abdul El-Sayed
What’s Next
The controversy is expected to shape the final stretch of the 2026 Michigan Senate race, with Rogers planning a campaign rally in Novi on November 5, 2024 (scheduled) that will feature the ad. Both campaigns are likely to reference the issue in upcoming debates and voter outreach efforts.