Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed faced criticism for declining to explicitly condemn the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) during a town hall event at the University of Michigan on Wednesday. The event, titled “Students vs. Billionaires,” was held at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor as part of a statewide campus tour organized by the progressive group More Perfect University aimed at engaging voters.
An attendee, identifying personal connections to victims of the Iranian regime’s repression, challenged El-Sayed on his previous silence regarding Iran’s crackdown on protesters and dissidents. The individual referenced El-Sayed’s alleged remarks earlier this year, in which he reportedly expressed reluctance to comment on the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, citing the grief felt by members of the Iranian-American community in Dearborn, Michigan.
“My cousin was hunted in the streets of Iran by the IRGC because her hijab wasn’t on right,” the questioner said, adding that their uncle was sentenced to death and subjected to 50 lashings under Iran’s government. The audience member pressed El-Sayed to clarify whether he regretted this silence and whether he would unequivocally denounce the IRGC and the Islamic Republic of Iran, condemning their role in reportedly killing 50,000 protesters.
El-Sayed did not directly repudiate the IRGC during the exchange. Instead, he shifted the discussion toward the broader topic of U.S. foreign policy and military intervention. He cautioned against American involvement in regime change efforts, suggesting such actions often serve corporate interests rather than promoting genuine democratic outcomes. “For too long and too often, when we think about our role in the world, we have turned ourselves into the world’s policeman,” he said.
While affirming his solidarity with freedom and democratic movements, El-Sayed said, “I don’t believe that we were in the right to go to war to topple the government of Iran. It was not our responsibility to do it.” The crowd member reiterated the demand for a direct denouncement of the IRGC, emphasizing the urgency and personal cost to those affected by the group’s actions. El-Sayed reiterated his opposition to U.S.-led regime change interventions and expressed concern that such campaigns are often motivated by access to natural resources and corporate profits.
The exchange highlighted a contentious aspect of El-Sayed’s foreign policy stance, with critics urging him to take a clearer position on the Iranian military organization amid ongoing violence and repression in Iran.