On the evening of Thursday, October 15, Trump posted a video on Truth Social about the Michigan Senate race. In it he says "Mohamed El-Sayed" is "a Muslim radical" and "a Muslim Brotherhood member, even though he denies it" (quoted from Newsweek's transcription; the candidate's first name is Abdul). The post's ID decodes to about 23:37 UTC, which is 7:37 p.m. Eastern Thursday. I couldn't open the post itself, so that is arithmetic on the ID. CBS says "late Thursday night" and Newsweek says Thursday. AP's October 17 story says Wednesday, which looks wrong.
This piece sets out what the public record supports about that claim. It does not decide whether El-Sayed is a good candidate.
What the evidence is
The claim traces to the Washington Free Beacon (October 12). It reports 2012 posts by Eman Abdelhadi, a University of Chicago professor. The Free Beacon describes her as El-Sayed's half-sister; Ynet reports the two share a mother, Fatten Elkomy, and have different fathers. Her posts, as quoted by the Free Beacon, CBS and AP:
- June 2012: "Had an amazing talk with my mom about her activism in the Muslim Brotherhood during the early 70s while she was in college #respect."
- June 24, 2012: "My family has long been MB, but I've always felt that it has navigated the political sphere poorly/destructively."
- A 2013 post: "Praying for all my family that supports the #MB in #Egypt."
I read these as quoted by the outlets, not on the X posts themselves. AP's summary: "There is no evidence that El-Sayed has any affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood." The posts describe his mother and unnamed relatives. They say nothing about him.
What he said
The exchange is in the Meet the Press transcript for October 11. Kristen Welker asked whether he could "set the record straight about whether you or your family have any ties to the Muslim Brotherhood."
El-Sayed: No. But let's talk about this.Welker: No, you don't have any ties? El-Sayed: No. Welker: And your family doesn't? El-Sayed: No.
When pressed on NBC Nightly News after the Free Beacon story, he said "I have no ties, we have no ties." He said he had never discussed it with his mother, that he wasn't raised by her, and that the evidence was "hearsay… from a tweet" (Fox News and Newsweek summaries; I didn't see the broadcast). CBS adds that after his parents divorced he was raised by his father and stepmother and did not see his mother for years.
The Free Beacon reports he stayed in contact with her. It cites a May 2026 campaign video of him phoning her, a 2020 Venmo payment and his book's description of her as a campus "leader." These don't contradict CBS, whose paraphrase covers his childhood. They do bear on how plausible "never discussed it" is, which is for readers to weigh.
Where the two accounts meet
His "No" to the family question is a flat denial. The sister's posts, if accurate, describe a parent's student activism about 50 years ago and unspecified relatives' sympathies. Whether that makes the "No" false depends on what "ties" means and on what he knew on October 11. The public sources don't establish either. They also don't show he is a member, which is what Trump's video says.
The Free Beacon adds that in 2012 he signed a statement as one of "Morsi Supporters in America." I haven't opened it. If accurate, it concerns support for an elected president, not membership in the group.
A separate thread: the relief agency
At the October 8 debate Rogers raised the Islamic American Relief Agency, where Elkomy worked from 1999 to 2004 (PolitiFact, citing The Midwesterner). It is a different claim, about the employer rather than the Brotherhood.
- The Treasury Department designated the agency (listed by OFAC as Islamic African Relief Agency, a.k.a. IARA and Islamic American Relief Agency) a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on 2004-10-13. I read the OFAC listing.
- PolitiFact says Elkomy was never charged. Court documents say she was involved in wire transfers that prosecutors said violated sanctions, and they don't establish the funds financed terrorism.
- Rogers said the organization was "indicted for funneling money to al-Qaida." AP's fact check says it was convicted of illegally sending funds overseas, not of terrorism offenses. AP quotes Snopes that there is no evidence Elkomy knew.
I haven't read the DOJ release or the court exhibits PolitiFact links.
What I couldn't check
- Whether the Muslim Brotherhood designations (AP says the Egyptian, Jordanian and Lebanese branches were designated earlier this year; the Free Beacon says January for the Egyptian branch) are as described. I haven't opened the government documents.
- Any statement from Elkomy herself.
- The original NBC Nightly interview, only Fox's and Newsweek's accounts of it.
Why it matters now
The election is November 3. RealClearPolitics' average on October 10 had El-Sayed 48.4, Rogers 45.7 (Newsweek). The "Muslim Brotherhood" label is now in the president's own words, so it should be clear what the sources under it can and cannot carry. On the record I read, that is a claim about his mother's student years, relayed by his sister, plus a disputed employment history. It is not a membership claim about him.