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A Michigan Democrat running for U.S. Senate is facing backlash after a report on leaked audio showing him explaining why he shouldn’t take a public position on the death of former Iran Supreme Leader Khamenei because of people in Dearborn, Michigan, who are “sad.”
Progressive Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, according to a report from the Washington Free Beacon, was recorded in a staff meeting strategizing about how to address the Iranian leader’s death after he was killed during U.S. and Israel’s military action in the country.
“I’m just gonna go straight to pedophilia, frankly,” El-Sayed said is heard saying about his response if pressed by a reporter. “I’ll just be like, ‘Pedophile president decides that he doesn’t like the front page news, so he decides to take us into another war.'”
El-Sayed also told his team, in reference to the significant Muslim population in Dearborn, “I also want to remind you guys that there are a lot of people in Dearborn who are sad today. So, like, I just don’t want to comment on Khamenei at all. Like, I don’t think it’s worth even touching that.”
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Abdul El- Sayed attends the Detroit Association of Black Organizations (DABO) Christmas Party 2025 at the Bridge Center on Dec. 16, 2025, in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Monica Morgan/Getty Images)
The report sparked immediate backlash from Republicans and conservatives on social media.
“Speaks volumes about the level of extremism within the El-Sayed coalition here,” Fox News radio political analyst Josh Kraushaar posted on X.
“Democrats have an abundance of riches to choose from when selecting which one of their Senate candidates is the craziest, most radical, and most anti-American,” GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno posted on X.
“Beyond parody,” conservative communicator Steve Guest posted on X.
“Well this is insane,” GOP adviser Nathan Brand posted on X.
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U.S. Senate candidate from Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, has been endorsed by Bernie Sanders and embraced comparisons between him and Zohran Mamdani. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
“Anyone who is sad that the Ayatollah is dead should be deported,” Heritage Foundation Senior Research Fellow Jason Bedrick posted on X.
“Disgraceful,” the Republican Jewish Coalition posted on X.
In a post on X, former Biden-Harris surrogate Kevin Walling called the news “disqualifying.”
Fox News Digital reached out to El-Sayed’s campaign for comment.
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In a statement to Washington Free Beacon, campaign lawyers at the Sandler Reiff law firm said the recording was “obtained without the campaign’s permission” and “without knowledge that individuals were being recorded.”
“The campaign is considering its legal options against the individual in question,” the statement added.
El-Sayed, who is Muslim, recently faced controversy for agreeing to team up with Hasan Piker, a far-left streamer who once said “America deserved 9/11.”
Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary will be held on Aug 4 as El-Sayed squares off against Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow and Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens to replace outgoing Sen. Gary Peters.
The Cook Political report ranks the race as a “toss up” heading into November’s consequential midterms.
