With the US midterm elections approaching, Michigan’s young Democratic leader Dr Abdul El-Sayed has moved to the centre of national politics. If he wins, he will be the first Muslim member in the history of the US Senate.
But US President Donald Trump has thrown himself into stopping his growing popularity and his chances of becoming a senator. At a public rally Trump called him a “jihadi” and alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood. That raises the question: who is Abdul El-Sayed, the man causing Trump such a headache?
Birth and education
Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed was born in Rochester Hills, Michigan, in 1984 to Egyptian immigrant parents. An outstanding student, he earned a PhD in public health and an MD in medicine. Rather than limit himself to clinical practice, he turned to research and became an assistant professor of epidemiology at Columbia University.
Record in public office
In 2015, at just 30, El-Sayed became executive director of the Detroit Health Department, the youngest health director of any major US city. In 2023 he became director of the Wayne County health department, a post he resigned last year to run for the Senate.
His campaign promises of practical measures such as lowering the cost of living, solving the housing crisis and ensuring affordable healthcare for all have drawn a strong response, especially among young and middle-class voters. Recent polls put him ahead of the Republican candidate, Mike Rogers, causing deep unease in Trump’s camp.
Trump’s attack and the “jihadi” label
At a rally in Michigan for the Republican candidate, Trump spent more time attacking El-Sayed than praising his own party’s nominee. He alleged that members of El-Sayed’s family were involved with the Muslim Brotherhood and that, as a senator, El-Sayed would gain access to highly sensitive US national security secrets. Trump called for El-Sayed to be stopped from reaching the Senate at any cost.
El-Sayed’s firm reply
El-Sayed flatly denied any link to the Muslim Brotherhood and hit back hard. “I can clearly see that President Trump is uncomfortable with the first part of my name, ‘Abdul’. Yet he has no problem with the Muslim names of the Saudis who have poured billions of dollars into his son-in-law’s business. Nor is he bothered about getting a $400 million private jet as a gift from Qatar,” he said.
Mocking Trump, El-Sayed added: “I don’t care whether Trump can pronounce my name properly, because after the November election he can simply call me ‘Senator’.”
Dr El-Sayed’s bid to make history has also stirred enthusiasm and support among immigrants in Michigan, including the Bangladeshi diaspora community.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report