Pastor Lorenzo Sewell, a Detroit-area Christian minister and ally of Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers, criticised Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed in an interview with Fox News Digital. Sewell warned that El-Sayed’s religious beliefs could influence federal judicial appointments and made wider claims about Muslim politicians; El-Sayed’s campaign rejected the remarks as “cheap attacks and hateful rhetoric”. The dispute highlights how religion, identity and judicial appointments have become issues in Michigan’s Senate race.

The article cites a 2009 interview in which El-Sayed said he used a Sharia-compliant home-financing arrangement, which avoids conventional interest payments. His spokeswoman said he follows his faith personally but opposes any religious group imposing its religious laws on US law. Sewell also questioned El-Sayed’s medical description; El-Sayed has an MD from Columbia University but did not complete a residency or hold a medical licence in Michigan or New York.