Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed spent the night before Election Day at a pool party with far-left streamer Hasan Piker, sparking pushback from both his primary opponent and his Republican opposition.
\nThe event was hosted by a content creator in Detroit, Michigan, and was attended by progressive House candidates Melat Kiros and Chris Rabb, both members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), The Associated Press reported.
\nMichigan Democratic state Rep. Donavan McKinney was also reportedly in attendance.
\nHASAN PIKER\u2019S DEFENSE OF HAMAS HAVING \u2018RIGHT TO RESIST MILITARILY\u2019 DRAWS CONDEMNATION FROM HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS
\nPiker, who has roughly 10 million followers across multiple social media platforms, has made multiple appearances on the campaign trail with El-Sayed, raising questions about the ideological similarities between the two.\u00a0
\nLast month, Piker drew backlash after addressing a group of college students while wearing an outfit resembling that of former communist dictator Mao Zedong.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never would and never will criticize Mao Zedong,\u201d Piker said earlier this year in a clip that recently resurfaced on social media. \u201cOne of the great leaders of this world.\u201d
\nPiker has also said in the past that \u201cAmerica deserved 9\/11\u201d and has made controversial comments about Hamas and the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
\nWhile El-Sayed has said he doesn\u2019t agree with all of Piker\u2019s positions, he has faced criticism for not distancing himself from the controversial streamer.<\/p>\n
Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., running against El-Sayed in Tuesday night\u2019s Senate primary, was asked about the relationship between El-Sayed and Piker in a press gaggle hours before polls closed.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t believe Mr. Piker lives here in our state. I do think his rhetoric should be denounced. I do think that my opponent should distance himself from him. I don\u2019t know what they were doing last night at this pool party that was going on, but I was with Congresswoman Hillary Scholten and Debbie Stabenow,\u201d Stevens told Fox News.<\/p>\n
Referring to Piker, Stevens said, \u201cSome of this stuff makes people uncomfortable. Frankly, it makes me uncomfortable. You know, we don\u2019t need these demagogues or people citing allegiance to Mao coming into Michigan.\u201d
\nAnd pointing to El-Sayed, Stevens added, \u201cMaybe instead of being with Mr. Piker, you know, if he ends up winning the nomination, maybe he\u2019ll come with me and hear from some of the small businesses who don\u2019t want this extreme politics coming into our state.\u201d
\nABDUL EL-SAYED SAYS RALLYING WITH HASAN PIKER DOESN\u2019T MEAN HE ENDORSES \u2018AMERICA DESERVED 9\/11\u2019 REMARK<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of spending his final hours campaigning with Michiganders, Abdul El-Sayed spent it poolside with an antisemite and terrorist sympathizer who believes America deserved 9\/11,\u201d NRSC regional press secretary Samantha Cantrell told Fox News Digital in a statement Tuesday.
\nThe campaign of presumptive GOP nominee Mike Rogers also weighed in as voters headed to the polls Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re getting ready to prosecute the case against Abdul, but it looks like he\u2019s already giving us a head start,\u201d Alyssa Brouillet, Rogers\u2019 campaign communications director, said in a statement to Fox News Digital. \u201cThis is giving fraud, not serious. And Michiganders are battling serious issues they need a senator to deal with \u2014 not someone who dances around with LA and NYC influencers who think \u2018America deserved 9\/11.\u2019\u201d
\nHours before the pool party, Piker was at a campaign event with El-Sayed where a reporter asked him if he plans to campaign with the progressive Senate candidate after Tuesday night\u2019s primary.
\nJAMES CARVILLE VOWS TO ABANDON DEMOCRATIC PARTY IF FAR-LEFT HASAN PIKER BECOMES LEADING VOICE<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you crazy?\u201d Piker responded. \u201cOf course.\u201d
\nFox News Digital reached out to the El-Sayed campaign and Piker\u2019s team for comment.
\nEl-Sayed squares off against Stevens in the Michigan Democratic Senate primary Tuesday night, where polls close at 8 p.m. El-Sayed, according to recent polling, is expected to advance to the general election in November to face Rogers in a race that could determine the balance of power in the U.S. Senate.
\nThe El-Sayed campaign did not respond to Fox News Digital\u2019s request for comment by the time of publication.<\/p>\n
This post appeared first on https:\/\/www.foxnews.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"