US President Donald Trump on Thursday expressed disbelief over the support that Jewish voters in Michigan gave Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed in last week's election, despite his history of controversial statements about Israel and the Jewish community.
Speaking in an interview with the Salem News Channel, Trump questioned why Jewish voters had favored El-Sayed over Republican Mike Rogers.
“If you look at El-Sayed in Michigan, he got more votes than the Republican candidate got by quite a bit from Jewish people," Trump said.
“It’s not even understandable. It’s a tough group to get," he added.
Trump's comments followed months of criticism directed at El-Sayed, whose positions on Israel and American military assistance to the Jewish state became a recurring issue during the Senate campaign.
At one campaign rally, Trump sharply condemned Jewish voters considering supporting the Democratic candidate, accusing El-Sayed of hostility toward Israel and Jewish Americans.
“Any Jewish person that supports this guy should be ashamed of themselves," Trump declared. “You should never speak to them again."
“I cannot understand how anybody who’s Jewish can even think about voting for this guy," he continued, adding, "And he’ll get some."
El-Sayed faced repeated scrutiny during the campaign over his statements concerning Israel, the war against Hamas, and antisemitic violence.
In an interview with MS NOW, he characterized Israeli military operations as "bloodthirsty" and accused Israel's leadership of committing genocide.
Speaking separately with journalist Jim Acosta, El-Sayed acknowledged that Hamas had committed war crimes but continued to accuse the Israeli government of wrongdoing.
He also opposed unconditional American military assistance to Israel and repeatedly declined to provide a direct answer when asked whether the Jewish state has a right to exist.
In another interview before the election, El-Sayed described Israel's leadership as "as evil as Hamas."
His response to an attack on Temple Israel, a synagogue in West Bloomfield Township near Detroit, also sparked criticism earlier this year.
While condemning the attack and antisemitism, El-Sayed addressed the broader circumstances by stating that “violence is a cycle" and that “hurt people hurt people."
The remarks prompted criticism, and El-Sayed subsequently apologized to the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus in late August.
His criticism of Israel continued in the final days of the election campaign.
During an interview with ABC News, El-Sayed argued that Israel should no longer be considered an American ally, accusing the Jewish state of accepting US financial support while drawing Washington into military conflicts.
“An ally that takes your money to push you into wars you shouldn't be fighting is not an ally," he said.
Trump had previously launched a particularly forceful attack against El-Sayed following his victory in the Democratic Senate primary in August.
“When I watch Abdul, he’s full of s--t," Trump said at the time, describing El-Sayed as a “man of hate" and accusing him of hostility toward Jewish Americans.
The President went on to claim that El-Sayed was concealing his actual beliefs behind public expressions of tolerance.
“This guy hates Jews. Somebody said, ‘Oh, that's a little strong’. No, he hates Jews and he hates Israel…He's a man of hate. And now he's going around saying, ‘No, I love everybody.’ He doesn't love everybody. Put him in office. You're going to find out what he loves."
Trump further asserted that El-Sayed “doesn't love Israel. He doesn't love Jewish people. He hates them. He hates them with a passion that burns in his heart."