Abdul El-Sayed was supposed to appear with Rep. Haley Stevens, his former primary opponent, but that looks dead in the water. Stevens has avoided appearing with El-Sayed; this would’ve been their first joint event. El-Sayed had to denounce an ad produced by Rebellion PAC in support of his candidacy that was antisemitic, even ardent liberals agree. It’s the one where a couple can’t buy groceries because Jewish people exist — that’s the theme. El-Sayed has yet to forcefully denounce the ad: antisemitism appears to be an issue he’s reticent to comment on, which is a red flag.
.@PaulBegala's message to the El-Sayed campaign on its controversial ad featuring Tucker Carlson: "He's making it hard on me, as a strategist, to understand why the hell you'd run an ad with Tucker when you've got footage of President Obama?!" https://t.co/clkq8YpSzK
— The Arena on CNN (@TheArenaCNN) October 30, 2026
Stevens and El-Sayed both issued statements. They’re at each other’s throats. Now, El-Sayed's new ad left longtime Democrat strategist Paul Begala a little sick to his stomach. It’s not an offensive ad, but it’s bad politics. Barack Obama went out of his way to rally for El-Sayed and bolster his standing with black voters, which likely won’t work. Still, the most popular Democrat appeared, and you don’t use any footage from that rally in this ad; El-Sayed opted for Tucker Carlson.
Begala wants El-Sayed to win, but he’s flummoxed by this move.
I’m in awe at the pettiness and poor judgment in this statement.
— Peter Meijer (@PeterMeijer) October 30, 2026