First Muslim Senator to Swear Oath on the Quran
Left says
- •El-Sayed's election and his choice to swear on the Quran represent a milestone of religious pluralism, showing that Americans of any faith or name can serve at the highest levels of government
- •His framing emphasizes inclusion rather than division, stressing that the oath is about what it means for the country, not just for him personally
- •Historical precedent exists for this moment, since Keith Ellison previously used Thomas Jefferson's own Quran when he was sworn into the House, tying the gesture to a distinctly American tradition of founding-era religious tolerance
- •El-Sayed and allies view the vitriolic and Islamophobic attacks he faced during the campaign as evidence of the very bigotry his win is meant to overcome
Right says
- •Many conservatives view the swearing-in choice alongside El-Sayed's past comments about personally following Sharia law as raising sincere questions about his values and allegiance to the Constitution
- •Critics highlight reporting on his past trips and associations, including meetings tied to groups with alleged Muslim Brotherhood connections, as relevant context voters and colleagues should weigh
- •Some conservative commentary frames his rhetoric about making 'America bigger' and labeling Michigan the 'capital of Arab America' as signaling a cultural or political agenda rather than unifying patriotism
- •Conservatives note the irony that Jefferson's own copy of the Quran, which El-Sayed may use, was acquired partly so Jefferson could understand the Barbary pirates attacking American ships, a historical detail they feel is being glossed over
Common Take
High Consensus- Abdul El-Sayed defeated Mike Rogers in Michigan's Senate race with roughly 52.5% of the vote, making him the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate.
- El-Sayed has said he will likely be sworn in on a Quran, though he has not finalized which copy, mentioning both Thomas Jefferson's historic copy and one held by the University of Michigan.
- Both sides recognize that El-Sayed's name, faith, and campaign became significant points of public and media attention throughout the race.
- There is agreement that this swearing-in will be a historic first for the U.S. Senate regardless of how it is interpreted politically.
The Arguments
Left argues
El-Sayed's election and his choice to swear on the Quran represent a milestone of religious pluralism, demonstrating that Americans of any faith can serve at the highest levels of government, consistent with the Constitution's explicit ban on religious tests for office.
Right counters
Supporting the constitutional right to hold office regardless of religion is not the same as being immune from scrutiny of specific statements a candidate has made about which legal or religious framework they feel bound by.
Right argues
El-Sayed's own statement that he is personally obligated to follow Sharia law until the day he dies raises legitimate questions about how he reconciles that personal commitment with his oath to the Constitution, and voters are entitled to scrutinize that tension.
Left counters
Countless officeholders describe personal religious obligations—Christians citing biblical law, Jews citing Halacha—without that being treated as disqualifying, and El-Sayed has explicitly framed his oath as being about inclusion within, not instead of, the American constitutional system.
Left argues
Using Thomas Jefferson's own Quran, as Keith Ellison did before him, ties El-Sayed's oath to a genuine founding-era American tradition of religious tolerance, showing this moment is rooted in, not opposed to, the nation's history.
Right counters
That same Quran was acquired by Jefferson largely to understand the Barbary pirates attacking American ships, a historical detail that complicates the clean narrative of founding-era tolerance being invoked.
Right argues
Reporting on El-Sayed's past trips and meetings with groups allegedly tied to the Muslim Brotherhood is relevant context that voters and future colleagues are entitled to weigh when evaluating his judgment and associations.
Left counters
El-Sayed has repeatedly denied and rebutted these characterizations, and vague guilt-by-association claims about meetings with nonprofit leaders have historically been used to smear Muslim candidates without substantiated evidence of wrongdoing.
Left argues
The vitriolic, Islamophobic attacks El-Sayed faced throughout the campaign, including mockery of his name by top Republicans, demonstrate the very bigotry that his win and his inclusive framing are meant to overcome.
Right counters
Criticizing a candidate's specific statements about Sharia law, his associations, or his campaign rhetoric is substantively different from bigotry, and conflating legitimate scrutiny with prejudice shuts down fair debate about a senator's positions.
Challenge Questions
These questions target genuine internal contradictions — meant to provoke honest reflection.
Right asks Left
“If religious pluralism means no faith should be treated with special suspicion, how should voters process a candidate's own explicit statement that he considers himself personally bound by a religious legal code, without either ignoring his words or appearing to apply a double standard relative to other faiths?”
Left asks Right
“If the concern is genuinely about constitutional allegiance rather than religion itself, why do conservative critiques focus so heavily on symbolic details like which Quran is used or phrases like 'capital of Arab America,' rather than on any specific policy position El-Sayed has taken that conflicts with the Constitution?”
Outlier Report
Left Fringe
Linda Sarsour and activist groups like MPower Action Fund represent a more combative framing that ties El-Sayed's win explicitly to anti-Israel foreign policy stances, which is further left than the median Democratic voter; this represents roughly 15-20% of the left.
Right Fringe
Figures like Bernie Moreno and commentators invoking 'jihadist credentials' or Breitbart's emphasis on Muslim Brotherhood ties represent a more conspiratorial, inflammatory fringe; this represents roughly 20-25% of the right, with more mainstream conservatives focusing on milder constitutional/values concerns.
Noise Assessment
High - much of the loudest commentary (viral X posts, Breitbart conspiracy angles, Sarsour's framing) is performative and amplifies polarization beyond where most moderate Americans likely sit, who probably see this as a notable symbolic milestone without strong feelings either way.
Sources (7)
Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed will be sworn in on a copy of the Quran when he takes his seat in Congress in January, vowing it'll help him "serve from the same sense of trying to make America bigger." He recently called Michigan the capital of Arab America, and said during the campaign that he was obligated to follow Sharia law until the day he dies.
<img src="https://www.theblaze.com/media-library/image.jpg?id=68667533&width=1245&height=700&coordinates=0%2C15%2C0%2C50" /><br /><br /><p>Democratic U.S. Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan says he is going to be sworn into office with a Qur’an.</p><p>El-Sayed will become the first Muslim to serve in the U.S. Senate after beating Mike Rogers in the midterm elections.</p><p class="pull-quote">'It really doesn't matter what your name is, doesn't matter how you pray. Like, America is big enough.'</p><p>El-Sayed also mocked Vice President JD Vance while pointing out the "delicious irony" that Vance is "constitutionally obligated" to swear him in as senator.</p><p>"I will likely swear in on the Qur’an," <a href="https://x.com/theblaze/status/2120884863720985040" target="_blank">said</a> El-Sayed in an interview with NPR host Leila Fadel that published Thursday. </p><p>"Which Qur’an, we're not sure. I mean, Thomas Jefferson had a copy of the Qur’an. So when Keith Ellison was sworn in to Congress, he swore in on that copy. There's also the University of Michigan holds the first Qur’an in the state of Michigan. It's very, very old," he added.</p><p>"And that might be the choice. So I don't know," El-Sayed said. "But I will swear on the Qur’an."</p><p>He went on to say that it was more important to America than it was to him personally that a Muslim be sworn in to the U.S. Senate for the first time in history. </p><p>"It<span style="background-color: initial;">'s less about what it means </span><span style="background-color: initial;">to me and more about what it means for America. I mean, everybody has the experience of being told they're less-than or excluded or that they don't </span><span style="background-color: initial;">belong," said El-Sayed. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: initial;">"I hope that when </span><span style="background-color: initial;">people see that, there is this sense that America really is big enough for you, right?" he added. "It really doesn't matter what your name is, doesn't matter how you pray. Like, America is big enough." <strong></strong></span></p><p><strong>RELATED: </strong><a href="https://www.theblaze.com/news/fire-will-rise-muslim-pundit-promises-reckoning-if-abdul-el-sayed-loses-and-also-if-he-wins" target="_blank"><strong>'Fire will rise': Muslim pundit promises 'reckoning' if El-Sayed loses — and also if he wins</strong></a></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-youtube"> <span class="rm-shortcode" style="display: block; padding-top: 56.25%;"></span> </p><p>El-Sayed easily defeated Rogers and was one of the beneficiaries of the blue wave of Democratic victories in the midterms. </p><p>Rogers garnered only 45.5% of the vote, while El-Sayed got 52.5%, <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-elections/michigan-senate-results" target="_blank">according</a> to the latest count in the Michigan election.</p><p>The University of Michigan does have <a href="https://www.lib.umich.edu/collections/collecting-areas/special-collections/islamic-manuscripts/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">many</a> old Qur’anic manuscripts, but it is unclear whether it has the "oldest" in Michigan.</p><p><em>Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. </em><em><a href="https://www.theblaze.com/newsletters/theblaze-articlelink" target="_self">Sign up here</a></em><em>! </em></p>
<p>U.S. Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-MI) said he plans to be sworn in on the Islamic Quran.</p> <p>The post <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/11/12/watch-muslim-u-s-senator-elect-abdul-el-sayed-reveals-plan-for-his-oath-of-office-ill-swear-on-the-quran/" rel="nofollow">Abdul El-Sayed Reveals Plan for His Oath of Office: ‘I’ll Swear on the Quran’</a> appeared first on <a href="https://www.breitbart.com" rel="nofollow">Breitbart</a>.</p>
After becoming the first Muslim elected to the Senate, Abdul El-Sayed says he plans to become the first senator sworn in on the Quran. The Michigan Democrat discussed his plans in an interview with NPR’s Leila Fadel, published Thursday on the podcast Newsmakers, saying he hasn’t decided which copy to use. “I will likely swear on a ...
In a stunning repudiation of President Trump, Democrats regained control of both chambers of Congress in Tuesday’s midterm elections, flipping seven Senate seats: Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Maine, North Carolina and South Carolina. Meanwhile, progressive Democrat Dr. Abdul El-Sayed defeated former Republican Congressmember Mike Rogers for an open Senate seat in Michigan with over 52% of the vote. El-Sayed campaigned on a platform of Medicare for All, tackling economic inequality and getting big money out of politics — as well as ending military aid to Israel. He is the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate. El-Sayed faced vitriolic, Islamaphobic attacks by top Republicans throughout the campaign.</p> <p>“Last night wasn’t just about Dr. Abdulrahman being a Muslim, winning and going to the United States Senate,” says Palestinian American organizer and author Linda Sarsour, who has been campaigning for El-Sayed. “It demonstrated that progressives can win in states like Michigan” and that “we can win on standing up for the human rights of the Palestinian people.”
The new Democratic senators are in Washington for orientation and are already facing tough questions about how they plan to govern. One is Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, the first Muslim elected to the Senate. His win came after a hard-fought race marked by outside spending and attacks on his name and his faith. Amna Nawaz sat down with El-Sayed to discuss how he hopes to shake up Washington.