Abdul El-Sayed Faces Backlash Over Usha Vance Swipe as Michigan Senate Race Tightens

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is facing growing backlash over a controversial social media attack involving Second Lady Usha Vance, with Republicans arguing the remarks could hurt him among women and Indian-American voters in one of the country’s closest Senate races.

The controversy began after Vice President JD Vance criticized El-Sayed’s past comments about Sharia law while campaigning in Ohio. Vance invoked his late grandfather, known as “Papaw,” saying the longtime union Democrat would not recognize what the Democratic Party has become.

El-Sayed responded by bringing Vance’s wife into the dispute, writing, “So do we think JD is taking Usha with him back in time to meet Papaw, or no …”

Critics interpreted the remark as suggesting Vance’s white, working-class grandfather would have objected to Usha because of her Indian-American background. Republicans quickly accused El-Sayed of injecting race into the dispute while targeting a candidate’s spouse who is not running for office.

Michigan Republican Party co-chair Sunny Reddy argued that attacking political opponents is one thing, but bringing their wives and children into political fights crosses a line. He predicted the controversy could damage El-Sayed among Indian-Americans, middle-aged women and other voters uncomfortable with attacks on politicians’ families.

Michigan has an estimated 130,000 Indian-American residents, making the controversy potentially significant in a statewide election expected to be extremely close. Republicans are already looking for ways to turn El-Sayed’s comments into campaign advertisements.

The latest controversy has also renewed attention on an earlier remark El-Sayed made about Usha Vance during an April podcast appearance. While criticizing the vice president, El-Sayed wondered aloud what Usha thinks when her husband speaks before making a crude reference to the couple sleeping together and her pregnancy.

Usha Vance has largely refused to engage in the political mudslinging. Asked about El-Sayed’s “Papaw” remark, she said she initially laughed and then described how warmly JD Vance’s Ohio family has treated her throughout their relationship.

She said she never had an opportunity to meet Vance’s grandparents, who died before the couple met at Yale Law School. But she pointed to the close relationship she has developed with the family members they raised, saying Vance’s aunt has become like a second mother to her.

Usha also pushed back against the apparent implication that she would have been unwelcome in Vance’s family because of her background. She described Ohio as more culturally diverse than she expected before visiting and said her husband’s relatives have always treated her as part of their family.

The controversy arrives at a particularly sensitive moment for El-Sayed. He is locked in a razor-thin Senate contest against Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers, with polling averages showing the race separated by less than a percentage point.

Vice President Vance has not yet directly responded to El-Sayed’s attack on his wife. Republicans, however, expect him to address the controversy when he travels to Michigan to campaign for GOP candidates near Detroit.

El-Sayed is simultaneously dealing with criticism over his association with left-wing streamer Hasan Piker, who has generated outrage over inflammatory comments including his infamous statement that “America deserved 9/11.”

The controversy has even attracted criticism from prominent Democrats. Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville recently called El-Sayed “really, really troubling” and argued that the Senate candidate should clearly identify which of Piker’s controversial statements he rejects.

Some Michigan Democrats have attempted to move past the Piker controversy, arguing that other issues should determine November’s election. But Republicans have shown no intention of allowing either controversy to disappear as they attempt to defeat El-Sayed and send Rogers back to Washington.

With control of the Senate potentially hanging on a handful of competitive races, even seemingly minor controversies can become significant. Republicans now believe El-Sayed handed them a political opening by dragging Usha Vance into his feud with her husband — and they intend to make sure Michigan voters hear about it before Election Day.