Trump and Obama campaign in Michigan's toss-up Senate race nine days before the US midterms
Barack Obama rallied in Detroit on Saturday for Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, and Donald Trump was due in Port Huron on Sunday for Republican Mike Rogers after posting that El-Sayed was a 'Muslim Brotherhood Jihadist', a claim El-Sayed denies.
President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama both campaigned this weekend in Michigan’s Senate race, one of the contests that will decide control of the US Senate in the 3 November midterm elections. The seat, held by retiring Democratic Senator Gary Peters, is contested by Democrat Abdul El-Sayed and Republican Mike Rogers, a former congressman. The Cook Political Report rates the race a toss-up, and a mid-October Marist poll put El-Sayed on 50% and Rogers on 48%, within the margin of error, The Guardian reported.
Obama rallied for El-Sayed in Detroit on Saturday 24 October, the first day of early voting in Michigan. He said El-Sayed would “finish the job we started with the Affordable Care Act” and accused Trump of “enriching himself and his family”, The Guardian reported. “We got to flip that circuit breaker, bring some accountability to this government,” Obama said, according to Fox News.
In a Truth Social post early on Sunday, Trump called Obama “a grossly incompetent President” and described El-Sayed as a “Muslim Brotherhood Jihadist” and a “Fake Doctor”. “VOTE FOR MIKE ROGERS! He will never let you down!” he wrote. Speaking to reporters before leaving Washington, Trump said: “We don’t want a member of the Muslim Brotherhood in our Senate,” and called Rogers “a perfect guy for our country”, Fox News reported.
El-Sayed, a doctor and former Wayne County health official, has repeatedly denied any ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, The Guardian reported. “To bring into question my commitment to the constitution is really beneath you,” he said in an exchange with Rogers broadcast on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday. If elected, he would be the first Muslim in the US Senate.
Trump was due to hold a rally in Port Huron at 3pm local time (19:00 GMT) on Sunday, the first visit by a sitting president to the city, MLive reported. Republicans hold the Senate 53-47.
Sources
- 9 days until midterms, Trump and Obama rally Michigan as Alaska race faces legal fight (live) · Fox News
- Obama rallies rapturous Michigan crowd for El-Sayed: 'He'll finish the job we started' · The Guardian
- Meet the Press – October 25, 2026 · NBC News
- 'I just love the man': Thousands of Trump supporters turn out for Port Huron rally · MLive
- Donald J. Trump on Truth Social · Truth Social
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