US President Donald Trump has invoked the September 11, 2001, attacks to target Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed during a campaign rally in Port Huron, Michigan, on Sunday. He accused El-Sayed of links to Muslim extremists and claimed Democrats would allow violent anti-American terrorists into the country.

"I'm here to keep a jihadist, Muslim Brotherhood member from becoming a United States senator," Trump told supporters in a region that backed him with 66% of the vote in the 2024 presidential election.

Trump compared El-Sayed to the hijackers of United Flight 93, which crashed during the 9/11 attacks. He urged Michigan voters to oppose the candidate, drawing parallels with Todd Beamer and other passengers who fought back against the hijackers.

"Twenty-five years later, Michigan needs to stand up and fight, just like Todd did, to stop a jihadist from walking into the Capitol," Trump said. He also claimed that if El-Sayed won, "he would be the only senator that will have to go through a metal detector before he's allowed to go in the Senate."

El-Sayed rejected the accusations at an event in Grand Rapids, accusing Trump of hypocrisy over his criticism of Muslim figures.

"I get that the president of the United States takes personal offence to my first name," El-Sayed said. "He doesn’t mind as much when it’s a shared name from the Saudis who are funding his son-in-law’s private equity, doesn’t seem to mind as much when it’s the Qataris who are giving him a $400 million private jet."

Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, runs Affinity Partners, which has reportedly received billions from a Saudi government entity. Qatar gifted Trump a Boeing 747 jet.

The largely White crowd at Trump's rally cheered his remarks, with some shouting “traitor” and “deport” despite El-Sayed being born in Michigan. A rally attendee, Terrance Camburn, said he supported Trump's criticism of El-Sayed's political beliefs.

Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers, who is competing against El-Sayed for an open seat, distanced himself from Trump's terrorist claims. "I've never called him a terrorist," Rogers told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday.

However, Rogers alleged without evidence that El-Sayed had links to the Muslim Brotherhood. El-Sayed denied any affiliation and called it "shameful" to question his loyalty to the United States. Rogers maintained that the candidate had not adequately addressed the allegations.

Former President Barack Obama campaigned for Democrats in Detroit on Saturday, criticising attacks against El-Sayed as attempts to portray him as “less American ⁠than they ​are.” Obama compared the claims to false allegations about his own birthplace, saying, "This ​stuff didn't work on me," and "Not in Michigan. It's not going to work on Abdul."

The November 3 midterm elections could determine control of Congress. Democrats need to gain several seats to overturn Republicans' narrow majorities in the Senate and House.