El-Sayed’s Political Rise Is Being Fueled by a Network With Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood Ties

Key findings

1. A super PAC created to weaken pro-Israel influence spent roughly $678,000 supporting Abdul El-Sayed’s Senate bid.
2. El-Sayed’s campaign has received more than $115,000 from 41 people linked to CAIR, while his father-in-law gave $200,000 to another super PAC supporting him.
3. CAIR and ISNA, where El-Sayed’s father-in-law has held leadership roles, were named as unindicted co-conspirators in the Holy Land Foundation Hamas-financing prosecution.
4. El-Sayed has a longer record of associations with Muslim Brotherhood-linked organizations and figures, and continues campaigning with Hasan Piker despite Piker’s open preference for Hamas over Israel.

Full report

## $678,000 in Outside Spending Helped El-Sayed **El-Sayed’s rise from progressive insurgent to Michigan’s Democratic Senate nominee was aided by American Priorities, a new super PAC organized as a counterweight to AIPAC and other pro-Israel political groups. The PAC is funded largely by wealthy Muslim-Americans and funds far-left candidates aligned with the group’s hostility toward Israel. American Priorities pledged to spend $10 million during the 2026 cycle supporting Democrats who believe their party remains too supportive of Israel, and federal filings show it spent roughly $678,000 backing El-Sayed.** **The PAC is funded by a newly active circle of wealthy Muslim donors capable of making six- and seven-figure political contributions. Its two largest backers, Mohamed Waqas Javed and Omer Hasan, have each contributed more than $1 million, while Tariq Afaq Ahmed gave $500,000. Several of American Priorities’ major donors previously helped finance Zohran Mamdani’s rise in New York before turning their attention to congressional and Senate races around the country.** **That presents an obvious contradiction for El-Sayed, who attacks the influence of wealthy interests and campaigns on getting “money out of politics.” He may reject pro-Israel outside spending, but his path to the Democratic nomination was assisted by hundreds of thousands of dollars from wealthy Muslim-Americans political donors trying to reshape U.S. foreign policy.** ## His Donor Network Intersects With the Holy Land Foundation Case **The concerns surrounding El-Sayed’s financial supporters go beyond ordinary opposition to Israel. At least 41 people who currently work for, previously worked for or held leadership positions in CAIR contributed more than $115,000 to El-Sayed’s campaign. Those contributors included senior CAIR figures.** **CAIR was identified as an unindicted co-conspirator or joint venturer in the Holy Land Foundation case, in which HLF and five leaders were convicted of providing material support to Hamas. The Justice Department said approximately $12.4 million was sent through Hamas-controlled or affiliated organizations. A federal judge later found “ample evidence” of associations between CAIR, ISNA, the Holy Land Foundation and Hamas, although neither CAIR nor ISNA was convicted and the court criticized the government for publicly releasing the co-conspirator list.** **The connection reaches El-Sayed’s family. His father-in-law, Jukaku Tayeb, gave $200,000 to Fighting for Michigan PAC, which supports El-Sayed, while reportedly serving for years on the founding committee of the Islamic Society of North America and previously leading CAIR-Michigan. ISNA was also named in the Holy Land Foundation case and was identified by prosecutors as part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood network.** **El-Sayed’s campaign and supporting PACs have benefited from substantial money connected to people holding positions in organizations that federal prosecutors examined during the largest Hamas-financing prosecution of its era.** ## El-Sayed Has His Own History With Brotherhood-Linked Groups **The organizations surrounding El-Sayed’s current campaign are not entirely new to him. While at the University of Michigan, El-Sayed served as vice president of the school’s Muslim Students’ Association. The national MSA movement has historical roots in organizations established by Muslim Brotherhood activists in North America and played a role in the development of ISNA. El-Sayed has also appeared multiple times at CAIR events.** **During Egypt’s Arab Spring, El-Sayed signed a 2012 letter supporting then-President Mohamed Morsi as he faced political opposition. Morsi was a longtime Muslim Brotherhood leader before becoming Egypt’s president.** **More recently, after a March 2026 attack targeting members of a West Bloomfield synagogue, El-Sayed suggested the attacker’s actions could be understood in light of Israeli strikes that killed members of the man’s family, including a brother described as a Hezbollah commander. El-Sayed condemned violence, but his effort to contextualize the attack fits a broader pattern of explaining jihadist violence through grievances against Israel rather than treating the ideology behind it as the central issue.** ## El-Sayed Continues to Stand With Hasan Piker **El-Sayed has also repeatedly appeared with streamer Hasan Piker, one of the most prominent anti-Israel voices on the online left. Piker has stood by his claim that Hamas is “a thousand times better” than Israel and, when directly asked which side he would choose, said he would pick Hamas every time.** **Piker has separately faced years of criticism over his statement that “America deserved 9/11.” Rather than distancing himself from Piker, El-Sayed dismissed criticism over their association as “cancel culture” and argued that appearing with somebody does not mean endorsing every statement that person has made.** **But El-Sayed’s willingness to keep campaigning with someone who explicitly says he would choose Hamas over Israel makes his condemnations less politically reassuring. He has had repeated opportunities to put distance between himself and Piker’s rhetoric and has instead continued the association.** ## Bottom Line **El-Sayed’s political rise is being powered by more than grassroots enthusiasm. Anti-Israel American Priorities PAC spent roughly $678,000 helping elect him while wealthy donors poured millions into a new political network focused on breaking Democratic support for Israel. His campaign separately took more than $115,000 from CAIR-linked contributors, while his father-in-law put $200,000 into a pro-El-Sayed super PAC.** **Those financial relationships sit alongside El-Sayed’s own history with organizations rooted in the Muslim Brotherhood milieu, his past support for Brotherhood leader Mohamed Morsi, his repeated appearances at CAIR events and his continuing alliance with Hasan Piker despite Piker’s explicit preference for Hamas over Israel.** **None of those facts establishes that El-Sayed supports or financed Hamas. But they leave voters with a much more serious question than whether El-Sayed is simply “anti-Israel.” Although El-Sayed may outwardly condemn Hamas while also criticizing Israel, his inner circle is filled with financial and political allies who support the terrorist group, the Muslim Brotherhood, and other Islamic extremists.** ## Sources - **RealClearInvestigations:** https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2026/08/11/how_hamas_attack_on_israel_is_transforming_american_politics_1199748.html - **Federal Election Commission:** https://docquery.fec.gov/pdf/690/202607289894482690/202607289894482690.pdf - **Inside Political Money:** https://insidepoliticalmoney.com/news/american-priorities-is-raising-millions-to-move-dems-left-on-israel-whos-donating/ - **El-Sayed campaign:** https://abdulforsenate.com/priority/money-out-of-politics/ - **Fox News:** https://www.foxnews.com/politics/el-sayed-campaign-backed-100000-dozens-members-group-alleged-terror-ties - **U.S. Department of Justice:** https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/federal-judge-hands-downs-sentences-holy-land-foundation-case - **Charity & Security Network:** https://charityandsecurity.org/litigation/summary_litigation_uncolist_hlf/ - **Washington Free Beacon:** https://freebeacon.com/democrats/abdul-el-sayeds-father-in-law-a-top-donor-to-an-el-sayed-super-pac-is-among-top-leaders-of-muslim-brotherhood-organization-linked-to-terror-funding/ - **Hudson Institute:** https://www.hudson.org/national-security-defense/the-muslim-brotherhood-s-u-s-network - **Jewish Insider:** https://jewishinsider.com/2026/04/hasan-piker-hamas-support-orphan-children/ - **Washington Free Beacon:** https://freebeacon.com/democrats/michigans-el-sayed-suggests-hasan-pikers-america-deserved-9-11-remark-must-be-viewed-in-context/