Abdul El-Sayed has taken a sharp swipe at his defeated Republican rival Mike Rogers, saying Vivek Ramaswamy showed more dignity by at least making a concession call after losing his own election.
The newly elected Michigan senator made the remarks during an interview with journalist Mehdi Hasan on Mehdi Unfiltered in Washington, D.C., where he revealed that Rogers had not contacted him since Tuesday night’s election.
“When Ramaswamy has more dignity than you do, it says something,” El-Sayed said, responding to Hasan’s question about whether he expected Rogers to call and concede.
El-Sayed won Michigan’s Senate race by seven percentage points on Tuesday, making history as the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate.
During the interview, Hasan brought up another closely watched election in Ohio, where Democratic governor-elect Amy Acton reportedly allowed Ramaswamy’s concession call to go to voicemail. Ramaswamy had faced criticism over campaign advertisements targeting Acton’s family and referencing the child sexual abuse she experienced.
Hasan then asked El-Sayed whether he had considered doing the same after Rogers had accused him of being a terrorist during the campaign.
“People have been very vicious in their claims that you are anti-American, you don’t love America. The propaganda was insane,” Hasan said before asking whether El-Sayed felt like letting Rogers’ call go to voicemail.
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“I don’t know that he’s even called me,” El-Sayed responded.
When Hasan pointed out that Rogers had not even given him an opportunity to ignore a concession call, El-Sayed delivered his pointed response about Ramaswamy.
“So Ramaswamy at least made the call, went to voicemail. This guy’s not even given you a chance to send it to voicemail,” Hasan said.
The exchange was also highlighted in a clip shared by Hasan on social media. In the caption, he wrote: “When Ramaswamy has more dignity than you do, it says something.”
The interview also covered El-Sayed’s plans for the Senate, his approach to holding the Trump administration accountable and the growing debate over Democratic leadership in Congress.
Asked about the possibility of replacing Chuck Schumer as Senate Democratic leader, El-Sayed said he wanted leadership that would be ready to act immediately.
“I’m looking for a leadership that is ready for action on day one,” he told Hasan.
“I’m hoping that somebody is going to come out there and help to build that kind of movement to try and get us to that point where we lead differently.”
El-Sayed also criticized Vice President JD Vance’s explanation for the Republican Party’s poor midterm performance, saying Republicans were facing the consequences of their support for President Donald Trump.
“This is what happens when you rubber stamp the dumbest possible president in American history, and then this man ruins your political future, and then now, all of a sudden, you’re trying to pretend like you had nothing to do with it,” he said.
The senator-elect further discussed his ambition to persuade Trump to support a Medicare-for-All bill, along with his plans for challenging the administration’s policies once he takes office in January.