A former top aide to Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, has publicly criticized the candidate's behavior and character, describing him as immature and disingenuous. Jordan Domingue, who served as El-Sayed’s bodyguard and personal assistant on multiple campaigns, made the remarks in a series of posts on the social media platform X.
Domingue characterized El-Sayed’s behavior as reminiscent of a high school locker room, pointing to incidents such as the candidate reportedly passing gas openly in front of staff as a form of humor. The former aide suggested that El-Sayed’s public persona, including expressions of masculinity, is performative and lacks genuine maturity.
Throughout his posts, Domingue also questioned El-Sayed’s professional credentials and political experience. He claimed that El-Sayed’s reference to “10 years of public service experience” was misleading and said that the candidate appeared to be “leapfrogging into a job he was inexperienced for” through connections rather than merit. Domingue further described El-Sayed as exhibiting entitlement and criticized his interactions with elected officials during his previous campaigns, calling the candidate’s behavior that of an “entitled mobster.”
Domingue raised concerns about El-Sayed’s stance on issues related to antisemitism and Jewish safety. He accused him of hypocrisy, particularly in response to a resignation from the artificial intelligence research organization Anthropic, and urged more attention be paid to how political incentives contribute to antisemitism within the Democratic Party. Despite El-Sayed having made Israel and the Gaza conflict a key part of his political platform, Domingue suggested that the candidate has been reluctant to engage deeply on Middle East issues during the closing weeks of the campaign.
In addressing speculation regarding El-Sayed’s sexuality, which had surfaced after a campaign video of him dancing to a Taylor Swift song drew online comments, Domingue rejected rumors that the candidate is gay, calling such claims inaccurate. Additionally, Domingue criticized El-Sayed for what he described as inconsistencies and misrepresentations in his public image and professional background.
Domingue also questioned El-Sayed’s relationship with law enforcement, calling it strained and pointing to the irony of El-Sayed receiving an endorsement in July from the Wayne County Deputy Sheriff’s Association despite Domingue’s assertion that the candidate has shown disrespect toward law enforcement officers in the past.
El-Sayed’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment. The criticisms from a former close aide add a contentious dimension to the campaign as El-Sayed seeks to secure the Democratic nomination ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.