West Bloomfield Township, Michigan

Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed apologized over the weekend for remarks he made following the March attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township, in which an attacker drove into the synagogue building before being killed by security. No children or staff at the temple's school were harmed. El-Sayed's earlier comments, including a reference to Israel's conflict with Hezbollah tied to the attacker's family losses in an Israeli airstrike, were widely seen by Jewish voters as excusing the violence.

Speaking at a Michigan Democratic Party Jewish caucus event, El-Sayed said, "If my statement caused pain, I'm sorry... We issued a statement, of course, condemning it, and that just should have been it, full stop." He has also distanced himself from streamer Hasan Piker amid antisemitism accusations. The episode has strained his standing with Jewish Democrats, some of whom have floated support for Republican rival Mike Rogers, and drawn criticism from Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer, who has withheld endorsement pending clearer condemnation of antisemitic rhetoric.