A campaign aide for Democratic Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed drew criticism Monday after comparing Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers' campaign imagery to a “KKK cross burning” in a social media post, as reported by Fox News.
The dispute began after Rogers released a campaign video Sunday featuring himself riding in the passenger seat of a red antique Ford pickup truck.
Two American flags were attached to the vehicle's tailgate as the truck traveled along a Michigan road.
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Rogers posted the video on X while promoting the Woodward Dream Cruise, an annual automotive event in the Detroit area. Toby Keith's “American Ride” plays during the video.
“Gotta love this American Ride! There’s no better way to do the Woodward Dream Cruise!” Rogers wrote in the post accompanying the video.
Mason Pressler, who serves as El-Sayed's political manager in northern Michigan, responded on X by criticizing the visual presentation of Rogers' campaign.
"Mike Rogers’ campaign has the aesthetics of a 1960s white flight suburb and a KKK cross burning," Pressler said.
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Rogers' campaign quickly highlighted Pressler's post and accused the El-Sayed campaign aide of equating a Michigan-made Ford truck with the Ku Klux Klan.
The Rogers campaign also added “Old Ford trucks” to a running list of things it says El-Sayed dislikes.
El-Sayed's communications director, Roxie Richner, told Fox News Digital that Pressler's statement did not represent the campaign's overall position.
She pointed to Pressler's X biography, which states that his posts express his own opinions.
Richner did not respond to a subsequent request for additional comment about Pressler's post.
The dispute comes as El-Sayed and Rogers compete in a closely watched Michigan Senate race. El-Sayed, a progressive Democrat, has faced criticism from some Democrats over his political positions and associations.
During the campaign, El-Sayed has appeared with socialist streamer Hasan Piker.
The campaign has also drawn attention over El-Sayed's positions concerning the Second Amendment and material previously published on his YouTube channel.
Among the issues raised by critics is an essay in which El-Sayed compared President Donald Trump with Osama Bin Laden.
El-Sayed has also faced questions about campaign contributions connected to employees of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR. According to previous reporting cited in the campaign dispute, El-Sayed received more than $100,000 from 41 people who work for the organization.
CAIR's status has been a subject of political dispute. The United Arab Emirates designated the organization as a terrorist organization, while Florida and Texas have formally designated or labeled CAIR in that context.
El-Sayed's family has also drawn attention during the campaign.
His sister, Eman Abdelhadi, is a University of Chicago professor who was arrested last year after authorities alleged she spit on a police officer during an anti-ICE protest outside the Broadview, Illinois, immigrant detention facility.
The Senate contest is unfolding as Democrats compete in their primary while Republicans prepare for the general election fight.
A recent poll cited in the campaign coverage showed El-Sayed with a 15-point lead over Rep. Haley Stevens in the Democratic primary.
For Rogers, the antique Ford video was intended to connect his campaign with Michigan's automotive heritage and the Woodward Dream Cruise.
For El-Sayed's campaign, Pressler's characterization of that imagery has now become a separate political controversy.
The incident also illustrates how campaign activity on social media can quickly become part of a broader political dispute, particularly in a closely watched Senate contest where candidates and their staffs are under scrutiny.
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