Abdul El-Sayed’s victory in Michigan generated a wave of Islamophobia across social media.
That’s the conclusion of a recent Washington Post study and several similar recent investigations, which find that El-Sayed’s religion became the main target of right-wing critics after he won the state’s Democratic Senate nomination and positioned himself to take on the GOP nominee, Mike Rogers, this fall.
According to the paper’s analysis, almost 1 in 3 posts about El-Sayed from right-wing figures mentioned Islam, Muslims, or Sharia Law, within 2 weeks of his August 4 victory.
This included far-right pundits like Laura Loomer, who referred to El-Sayed as a jihadist, and GOP lawmakers, like Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) who declared that the former public health official could be the first “TERRORIST” to join the Senate.
In a post on X, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed that El-Sayed is a “Hamas supporter” who could help send the United States down a “truly dark road” if Americans don’t “wake up to this threat.”
On Truth Social, President Donald Trump posted a photo of himself with the First Lady, juxtaposed with an image of El-Sayed with his wife, who wears a hijab. “Two VERY DIFFERENT America’s [sic],” reads the image.
In an article on this recent wave of Islamophobia, the New York Times points out that Republicans frequently refer to El-Sayed by his entire name, Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed, in an effort to stoke further xenophobia.
“Few officials in the Republican Party have publicly tried to tamp down such messaging,” notes the paper.
The attacks on El-Sayed certainly aren’t occurring in a vacuum.
On August 19, over 20 people were arrested in Dearborn, Michigan, after fascist provocateurs descended on the building where the city council holds its meetings. The “Christian Crusader March” was led by Jake Lang, who served four years in prison for his role in the January 6 insurrection before being pardoned by Trump. It was the third time that the anti-Muslim activist had shown up in the predominantly Arab-American city to rail against the religion.
Earlier this month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered a review of airports in Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) and Houston “for possible revocation of active state grant funds,” over plans to build washing stations for Islamic pre-prayer ablution. The DFW airport immediately ditched the proposal in response to the threat.
The Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) referred to the move as an “anti-Muslim political stunt.”
“Of all the silly controversies that [Abbott] has manufactured about Muslims over the past year, the airport washing station outrage might be the most ridiculous. And hypocritical,” said the group in a statement.
In another analysis, Al Jazeera found that El-Sayed’s win ignited a “coordinated digital smear campaign,” which began with right-wing pundit Benny Johnson clipping the phrase “inshallah” (which means, “God willing”) from his election night speech.
The investigation found that the campaign spread across 1,966 accounts and more than 2,500 connections in its first 24 hours. “The far-right narrative spread rapidly as political figures and pro-Israel organisations joined the debate,” notes the site.
The Center for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH) found a twentyfold increase in anti-Muslim posts after the Michigan primary and says the surge has not subsided. On X, the summer’s highest single day of anti-Muslim bigotry occurred on the day after the election.
“These campaigns draw on conspiracy theories about Muslim religious practices, mosques, and the supposed imposition of ‘Sharia law,’ all reinforcing a broader narrative of an impending Muslim takeover,” concludes the study, which notes that a similar uptick in Islamophobic posts after Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City. “This narrative echoes the Great Replacement theory and intensifies around major events, including conflicts in the Middle East and the growing visibility of Muslims running for public office.”
Mike Rodgers, El-Sayed’s opponent, has also leaned into these narratives, claiming that El-Sayed is “UnAmerican” and antisemitic.
El-Sayed says that the GOP often turns to Islamophobia because the party is out of ideas.
“I know that Michiganders are open-minded,” he recently told MS Now. “They’re big-hearted. They’re less interested in how you pray than what you pray for.”
“And we all pray for the same things,” El-Sayed continued. “We want what’s good for our kids and our families. We want clean air, clean water, healthcare we can afford. So they’re going to use Islamophobia because their ideas are tired. Their economy sucks. They’re taking us to wars we shouldn’t fight. And we have an opportunity to actually focus on bringing us together.”
