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Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed remarked on whether he would consider running for president of the United States, during an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday.
Host Kristen Welker closed her interview asking El-Sayed whether he believed America was “ready” to elect a Muslim candidate for president.
“That’s not a question I’m asking,” El-Sayed answered. “I think Michigan is ready for a Muslim senator.”
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U.S. Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan Abdul El-Sayed told “Meet the Press” that he has no interest in running for president. (Jeff Kowalsky / AFP via Getty Images)
Welker repeated the question, but El-Sayed continued to say the question was “irrelevant” and that Michigan was ready for a Muslim senator.
“Okay, but you don’t rule out the possibility that—?” Welker asked.
“I have no intention of ever running for president. That is not a thing I’ve ever wanted to do,” El-Sayed said.
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He continued, “I want to be a really great senator for my state. You know, someday, somewhere, somebody down the line decides to run, that would have been a really amazing thing to see how big America really is. But for right now, I really want to be the next senator from Michigan. That’s what I’d like to be for a long time to come. I’m looking forward to serving out the next six years. I’m honored to get to do this. And look, America is a big place, and America has this incredible way of reminding us how big she really is. And that starts in Michigan.”
During the interview, Welker also asked another question about a presidential run while referencing a reported comment made by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., where she remarked, “If Abdul can win in Michigan, anybody can win anywhere.”
Abdul El-Sayed, US Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan, has repeatedly denied being connected to the Muslim Brotherhood. (Sarah Rice/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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“If you lose Michigan, does that mean that a progressive like AOC can’t win the White House in 2028?” Welker said.
“Look, this is one seat in Michigan that has a lot more to do with our local issues in Michigan than it has to do with a national referendum,” El-Sayed said.
Fox News Digital reached out to NBC and El-Sayed’s campaign for comment.
El-Sayed’s interview came after his Thursday debate with GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers in which Rogers brought up alleged ties between El-Sayed and the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist organization.
El-Sayed has repeatedly denied these ties. He also rejected the premise when asked by Welker.
Michigan Senate candidates Abdul El-Sayed and former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers faced off against each other in a recent debate. (Sarah Rice/Getty Images; Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“No,” he said, before claiming the allegation was based in Islamophobia.
“It’s truly shameful, but he has no ideas, he doesn’t actually care about solving problems,” El-Sayed said of Rogers.
In a comment to Fox News Digital, Media Research Center President David Bozell criticized what he considered Welker’s eagerness to consider El-Sayed a presidential candidate.
“NBC took one look at Abdul El-Sayed and started planning the presidential library. Never mind Hasan Piker. Never mind Michigan. Meet the Press skipped the vetting and went straight to measuring El-Sayed’s Oval Office drapes,” Bozell said.
