The candidates also clashed over El-Sayed's citizenship and campaign funding from individuals associated with the Muslim Brotherhood. On foreign policy, El-Sayed declined to state whether Iran or Israel posed a greater threat to U.S. security, while later calling for a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants. Former President Trump later claimed Rogers "obliterated" his opponent, though Polymarket currently lists El-Sayed as the favorite to replace retiring Senator Gary Peters with a 69% probability.
Tuesday, October 20, 2026
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Mike Rogers Calls Abdul El-Sayed Fake Doctor in First Michigan Senate Debate
US Politics11 days ago
Republican Mike Rogers questioned the medical license and professional credentials of Democrat Abdul El-Sayed during a televised forum on Thursday. Rogers called El-Sayed a "fake doctor" who lacks the license required to practice medicine and alleged that El-Sayed's mother once worked for the Islamic American Relief Agency, a sanctioned entity linked to Al-Qaeda. El-Sayed responded by calling Rogers a "sock puppet" for Donald Trump and accusing the Republican of voting 19 times to increase prescription drug prices.
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