Council on American–Islamic Relations

Michigan Senate candidates Abdul El-Sayed (D) and Mike Rogers (R) clashed in a debate over campaign finance and outside funding ahead of the November midterms. El-Sayed criticized Rogers for profiting from corporate work after leaving Congress and said he does not personally own stock, framing himself as opposed to money's influence in politics.

Rogers pushed back, calling the characterization false and raising accusations that El-Sayed has received financial support tied to George Soros and groups linked to designated terrorist organizations including Hamas, Hezbollah and Al-Qaeda. El-Sayed did not directly deny the claims during the exchange. The allegations build on earlier reporting, including Senate testimony raising homeland security concerns over El-Sayed's family ties to Muslim Brotherhood-linked groups and a voter-engagement organization connected to CAIR, as well as prior claims about donations tied to associates of Jeffrey Epstein. Rogers has repeatedly called on El-Sayed to return money linked to terrorist organizations. The race is one of several competitive Senate contests shaping control of the chamber in the midterm elections.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the state Cabinet voted Tuesday to designate the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), its Florida chapter, the Muslim Brotherhood and antifa as domestic terrorist organizations, alongside more than 90 groups already on the federal foreign terrorist list, including al-Qaeda, Iran's IRGC, the Houthis and Mexican drug cartels. The designations, made under new state law HB 1471, are set to take effect Nov. 5 and could strip groups of public funding and contracts, force dissolution, and impose criminal penalties for material support, with added consequences for Florida schools and colleges.

CAIR and civil-liberties groups, including the ACLU and Southern Poverty Law Center, are challenging the action in federal court, arguing it violates First and Fourteenth Amendment protections and lacks evidence of violent conduct. A prior DeSantis executive order against CAIR was previously blocked by a federal judge. State officials, including Attorney General James Uthmeier, defend the designations as necessary to cut off funding to groups they say support terrorism. The legal fight is expected to intensify before the November effective date.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation making California the second state, after Washington in 2025, to formally recognize Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as state holidays, joining Lunar New Year and Diwali on the state's holiday calendar. The move affects California's more than 1 million Muslim residents, allowing state employees to use existing paid time off to observe the holidays, which mark the end of Ramadan and honor Abraham's devotion to God, respectively. Because Muslims follow a lunar calendar, the dates shift yearly; Eid al-Fitr is expected around March 10 and Eid al-Adha around May 17 next year.

The law does not mandate statewide school closures, but allows local districts to declare days off if communities request it, and lets students cite state law when absent for the holidays. Advocates, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations' California chapter, framed the recognition as validating Muslim identity amid rising scrutiny of the community, citing a recent Pew survey showing 42% of Americans view Muslim Americans negatively.

The California attorney general's office has dropped all felony charges against five Stanford University students prosecuted over a June 2024 campus protest against Israel's actions in Gaza. The students were among 12 who barricaded themselves in the university president's office for an hour, demanding Stanford divest from companies tied to Israel. They had faced felony conspiracy to trespass and vandalism charges, first announced in April 2025 by Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen.

Five students went to trial in early 2026, which ended in a hung jury. A judge later ordered Rosen to recuse himself over a conflict of interest, after evidence emerged he was using the case to fundraise for his reelection campaign. The state attorney general's office then took over and reached a resolution dropping all charges in exchange for 100 hours of community service and roughly $50,000 in restitution. Three students who had earlier accepted plea deals will also have their convictions overturned. Civil rights groups, including CAIR's San Francisco Bay Area chapter, welcomed the outcome, arguing the felony charges were disproportionate to the protest activity.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott addressed the Dallas GOP midterm convention, casting November's election as a stark choice between "common sense and crazy" as he seeks a fourth term against Democratic state Rep. Gina Hinojosa. Speaking to a crowd of nearly 15,000, Abbott touted his record on border security, including Texas's own border wall, a sanctuary city ban, and a state crime for illegal crossings, contrasting it with the Biden administration's approach.

He also highlighted laws barring China, Russia, and Iran from purchasing Texas land, an executive order designating the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as terrorist organizations, and a pledge to ban sharia law in the state. Abbott criticized Democrats over energy policy, taxes, and transgender-related issues, linking Hinojosa and other statewide Democratic candidates to positions he characterized as extreme. Polling shows Abbott holding a slight edge over Hinojosa, though Democrats say they see a tightening race heading into the fall.

Southern Methodist University has canceled plans to host the Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations' (CAIR) Muslim Youth Leadership Symposium, a civic engagement event for high school and college students, citing Gov. Greg Abbott's November designation of CAIR as a "foreign terrorist organization." The designation stems from Texas Senate Bill 1900, a 2023 law originally framed as targeting cartel networks, which allows the governor to label groups as foreign terrorist organizations and subjects their property to seizure and their members to enhanced criminal penalties and state surveillance.

CAIR has never been criminally charged and does not operate outside the U.S., but Abbott's declaration cites the group's alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood and a 2009 terrorism financing case. CAIR is challenging the designation in court and is seeking a new venue for the September conference. Florida enacted a similar designation against CAIR in December, restricting the group's access to state funds. Civil liberties advocates warn such laws, now present in 32 states, raise First Amendment concerns and risk chilling free speech and campus discourse.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate ritual washing facilities for Muslim travelers at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and George Bush Intercontinental Airport, arguing that because the airports receive federal funds, the accommodations may violate anti-discrimination conditions attached to that funding. The Council on American-Islamic Relations' Texas chapter rejected the characterization, calling the facilities accessible public infrastructure open to all travelers, comparable to nursing rooms or interfaith prayer spaces, and describing Abbott's move as an "anti-Muslim political stunt."

The DOJ referral follows an earlier complaint Abbott filed with U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, after which DFW dropped plans to expand its ablution stations, citing uncertain benefit. Texas is home to more than 300,000 of the roughly 4.5 million Muslims in the U.S. Advocacy groups say anti-Muslim rhetoric in American politics has intensified in recent years, and Republican officials in Texas and Florida have separately labeled CAIR a terrorist organization, a claim the group disputes.