Senate Nominee Abdul El-Sayed Faces Scrutiny Over 2012 Letter Supporting Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood

Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed is facing scrutiny over a 2012 letter he signed while in medical school that urged Egypt’s then-President Mohamed Morsi to purge the media and police. The document, published in Arabic on the Egyptian news website Al-Ahram Gate in November 2012, has drawn attention following reports in multiple publications.

The letter appeared days after Morsi issued a sweeping declaration that expanded his executive powers and shielded his decisions from judicial review. Morsi’s actions sparked widespread criticism from Egyptian lawmakers, human rights groups, and international observers who warned that the move was consolidating authoritarian rule. Human Rights Watch explicitly warned at the time that Morsi’s decree undermined the rule of law.

The document listed 46 signatories identified as leaders of the Egyptian-American community, including a Dr. Abdul Rahman El-Sayed of New York. Sources familiar with Arabic-language media identified him as the same person currently running for the U.S. Senate in Michigan. The signatories backed what the text called Morsi’s revolutionary decisions and urged him to act decisively.

“We, leaders of the Egyptian community, support the revolutionary decisions taken by the president, and we call on him to purge the media and the police as quickly as possible,” the letter stated. The signatories also criticized Western involvement, stating that they strongly rejected voices courting America and Europe to take a position against the Egyptian regime.

Campaign aides for El-Sayed declined to answer media inquiries regarding the 2012 letter. El-Sayed has previously disavowed the Muslim Brotherhood, and his campaign has denied any connection to the organization.

In the months following Morsi’s decree, Egyptian authorities pursued journalists accused of insulting Islam and the president, while critical coverage faced increasing restrictions, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Egypt’s military ultimately removed Morsi from power in 2013, after which the Egyptian government banned the Muslim Brotherhood and designated it a terrorist organization.

Several branches of the Muslim Brotherhood have also been designated terrorist organizations by the United States government, including affiliates in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Sudan. Founded in Egypt in 1928 by Hassan al-Banna, the Islamist movement seeks to establish a society governed by Islamic law and has influenced various regional groups, including Hamas, which the U.S. designates as a foreign terrorist organization.

In addition to the 2012 letter, past commentary has drawn public attention. Reports indicate that El-Sayed defended the Muslim Brotherhood in 2011 opinion articles published in the media, arguing that Americans should not assume the movement would govern similarly to Iran or Hamas.

Scrutiny has also extended to family background. Reports highlighted that El-Sayed’s mother, Fatten Elkomy, previously worked in Missouri for the Islamic American Relief Agency, a charity founded in 1985 that raised at least $20 million before the U.S. government designated it as a supporter of terrorist organizations, including al-Qaeda. The charity closed in 2004, and reports noted that Elkomy was never accused of wrongdoing.

Political figures have begun weighing in on the candidate’s past associations. Senator Ted Cruz warned on his podcast that El-Sayed’s alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood could pose a national security risk, suggesting that granting him access to classified information through Senate committees could jeopardize American service members.