El-Sayed’s Radical Half-Sister Creates Headaches for Democrat’s Senate Campaign

Eman Abdelhadi, the maternal half-sister of the Democratic candidate for Senate in Michigan, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, is causing headaches for the campaign with her far-left activism and social media posts.Ms. Abdelhadi, a University of Chicago assistant professor, is a self-described “queer Muslim” and a pro-Palestinian activist who has referred to the war in Gaza as genocide. She has also called America a “pretty evil place” and boycotted Independence Day.“Excuse me if I don’t celebrate the transfer of stolen land from one colonizer to another,” she said in one resurfaced X post about the July 4 holiday.Ms. Abdelhadi was arrested last October on felony charges during a protest at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in the Chicago suburbs. She reportedly spit on a law enforcement officer and then resisted arrest.The University of Chicago previously announced it was investigating Ms. Abdelhadi after she criticized the school at a conference called Socialism 2025.“F— the University of Chicago, it’s evil, you know it’s a colonial landlord. Like, why would I put any of my political energy into this space? I kind of had a little bit of disdain for people who spent their time doing that,” Ms. Abdelhadi said in a July 2025 panel discussion.The university has not publicly issued any statement on the results of the investigation but Ms. Abdelhadi continues to be employed by the school.Ms. Abdelhadi faces renewed scrutiny over October 7, 2023, social media posts that included “Morning freedom” and a Palestinian flag. Critics say the post celebrated Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel. She later said she didn’t know the full extent of the brutal attacks and kidnappings when she made the post.Ms. Abdelhadi also responded to a post by Senator Bernie Sanders who called the attack “horrifying.”“What a disappointment. If you can’t stand with a ppl that have been held in an open prison for 16 years finally fighting their oppressors, how can you claim to stand for justice?” Ms. Abdelhadi responded.Dr. El-Sayed won the Democratic nomination in an August 5 primary against establishment-backed Congressman Haley Stevens and will face a Republican former lawmaker, Congressman Mike Rogers, in the general election. A Fox News survey of Michigan registered voters released on Thursday shows the race is a dead heat. If Democrats lose the race, there is virtually no path for the party to retake control of the Senate.Dr. El-Sayed has run on a left-wing platform, touting universal health care, instituting an arms embargo on Israel, and hiking taxes on America’s wealthiest. He has said he hopes to build a left-wing coalition nationally.Republicans are trying to make Dr. El-Sayed the face of a radical left-wing Democratic party controlled by the Democratic Socialists of America, with Speaker Mike Johnson trying to amplify an anti-communist message.“It’s no longer Republican vs. Democrat. It’s not even common sense vs. crazy,” Mr. Johnson wrote in an X post. “It’s America-loving vs. America-hating COMMUNISTS, and today’s Democrat Party has shown us who they really are.”Dr. El-Sayed’s campaign has not commented on his half-sister. An ad campaign highlighting his family’s roots in Michigan featured his step-grandparents but made no mention of Ms. Abdelhadi.A request for comment by Ms. Abdelhadi was not immediately returned.

El-Sayed’s Radical Half-Sister Creates Headaches for Democrat’s Senate Campaign

El-Sayed’s Radical Half-Sister Creates Headaches for Democrat’s Senate Campaign

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