Mich. Jewish Dems Hit El-Sayed With Petition

Michigan Jewish leaders are putting Democrat Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed on notice, circulating a petition with five 'nonnegotiable' principles candidates must embrace to earn their support in November. The petition, which was obtained by The New York Times, does not name El-Sayed, but it is widely viewed as directed at the progressive nominee as he struggles to mend relations with Jewish voters over some of his comments and his response to a Hezbollah-inspired attack on a Michigan synagogue. Among the demands are support for 'Jewish sovereignty in Israel,' a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians, and 'full participation in American political life' for Jewish Americans, according to the Times report. The petition also reportedly rejects 'cleverly worded arguments advanced to return the Jewish people to statelessness and powerlessness — a position that a supermajority of Jews everywhere recognize as genocidal.' El-Sayed, who defeated pro-Israel Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., in the Aug. 4 Democrat primary, has been a fierce critic of Israel and has declined to commit to its continued existence as a majority-Jewish state. When asked about his position by the Times in July, El-Sayed said he doesn't 'believe in ethno-states.' The controversy has followed El-Sayed into the general election against former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers for the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich. El-Sayed has stepped up his outreach to Jewish Democrats since winning the primary. At a Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus gathering late last month, he apologized for his response to the March attack on Temple Israel in West Bloomfield. El-Sayed had initially condemned the attack but later added context about the attacker's family members being killed in an Israeli strike in Lebanon and used the phrase, 'Hurt people hurt people.' He subsequently acknowledged that his handling of the episode was a mistake. Vice President JD Vance hammered El-Sayed over those remarks during a campaign swing through Michigan on behalf of Rogers. Vance called the Democrat's response 'very evil' and highlighted his meeting with Temple Israel representatives during his visit. The vice president said the March assault was 'a terrible, antisemitic terrorist attack.' The backlash against El-Sayed extends beyond the new petition. More than 400 Michigan Jews, including some longtime Democrat supporters, previously signed a separate letter pledging to vote for Rogers, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Rogers has sought to capitalize on the split, courting Jewish and disaffected Democrat voters as he campaigns for the open Senate seat. Rabbi Asher Lopatin, an Ann Arbor-area Jewish leader who has traditionally leaned Democrat, has emerged as one of Rogers' prominent supporters. Lopatin told Newsmax late last month that Jewish voters should be willing to cross party lines over concerns about antisemitism. "We cannot tolerate candidates that trade in antisemitism," Lopatin said on Newsmax's 'Sunday Report.' "Whatever your fear is, the broader fears, we have to stop that in its tracks for the good of the Democratic Party and for the good of all the progressive policies that people might advocate for."