Democratic Organizer Fired After Alleging El-Sayed Accepts Foreign Campaign Funds

A Democratic organizer was fired after alleging that Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is accepting overseas campaign contributions, potentially in violation of federal law.

"You know, [El-Sayed] has people from overseas that donate to him," Abdoul Beckwith told an undercover O’Keefe Media Group reporter, who was surreptitiously filming their conversation.

The undercover reporter noted that such contributions would violate federal campaign finance laws. Beckwith, described as a regional field organizer for the Michigan Democratic Party, agreed, stating, "No, it is not allowed."

Under federal law, foreign nationals are prohibited from directly or indirectly making political contributions in federal, state, or local elections. However, U.S. citizens and green card holders living abroad are permitted to donate to political campaigns.

Former Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), El-Sayed's opponent in the Senate race, has frequently raised El-Sayed's alleged ties to groups such as Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Rogers has accused El-Sayed of not disavowing these groups.

In his recorded conversation, Beckwith suggested El-Sayed's reluctance to denounce these groups stems from a need to retain support from those who initially backed him. "He can’t just say, you know, ‘No, I don’t support Hamas,’ you know, ‘I reject all of them,’ because he’s going to lose the people that brought him up in the first place," Beckwith said. He added, "So when Abdul is going to denounce that, they’re going to think that he is siding with the genociders," seemingly referring to Israel.

A spokesperson for El-Sayed’s campaign, Roxie Richner, dismissed Beckwith’s claims, stating, "This junior staffer has never been employed by the Abdul for Senate campaign – his comments here are untrue, wildly misinformed, and not reflective of the campaign." Richner added, "The Abdul for Senate campaign is fully in compliance with FEC regulations."

The Michigan Democratic Party also downplayed Beckwith’s comments, confirming his termination. "This individual has no knowledge of the Abdul campaign’s internal operations and his claims are categorically false. He is no longer employed with the coordinated campaign," the party said in a statement.

El-Sayed's campaign reported raising $30.7 million last quarter, significantly more than Rogers' $9.7 million during the same period.