Abdul El-Sayed is under fire for delaying tax disclosures, and the debate over his finances has become a flashpoint in the Michigan Democratic primary. Opponents and commentators are pressing him for clarity about foreign holdings, rental income, and the timing of his filings as voters demand straightforward transparency.
El-Sayed says paperwork is the hold-up, but critics say that excuse smells like avoidance in a high-stakes race. “You’ve sought an extension through August 13, I believe, which is after the primary,” El-Sayed, who is endorsed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and other far-left lawmakers, was asked on Wednesday. “Was this to avoid transparency with your voters? Why not release them before the election?”
“No,” El-Sayed replied. “Taxes get complicated.” He followed that by pointing to overseas family holdings as the cause of the delay, trying to frame the issue as an administrative snag rather than a transparency problem. “My wife and her family own property abroad and getting all those tax forms is a thing,” he added.
That explanation clashes with a candidate disclosure report El-Sayed filed in June 2025 that lists a series of assets and income figures. The filing shows a Wayne County salary and other holdings that put his combined net worth somewhere between $580,000 and $1.7 million. Opponents counter that the paperwork he cites should already exist if he filed a disclosure in June.
The report lists a Wayne County salary of $278,900 and several rental properties reported in different ranges of value and income. His wife reported a rental property in Bangalore, India worth between $100,001 and $250,000 and income listed between $5,001 and $15,000. Another rental in Ann Arbor shows value and income ranges as well, a picture that should make the tax records straightforward to assemble.
Many viewers found his answers hard to square with those filings, and outside reporters called the response odd. “A bizarre response,” Chuck Ross, a Washington Free Beacon investigative reporter, wrote “He filed a Senate financial disclosure in June 2025 that listed his wife’s rental property in India.”
Sen. Katie Britt put it bluntly on television, insisting voters deserve proof of allegiance and financial clarity. “When it comes to actual transparency and investment, the fact that he is saying ‘my wife has foreign assets. My wife has investments abroad.’ Look, we need to know you have allegiance to the United States of America,” Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., told Fox News. “You need to come before the people that are working to elect you, and you’ve got to show them what you’re about.”
High-profile voices from across the spectrum piled on, arguing that tax releases are basic political hygiene. “Perhaps now would be a good time to ensure that any Dem running for a Senate seat be 1000% transparent well ahead of the primary elections,” Center for American Progress President Neera Tanden posted on X. “Releasing your taxes is pretty basic.” “If you have nothing to hide, then just release the tax returns. These Trump tactics are an extremely bad look,” another observer
WATCH: SURFACED VIDEOS OF DEM SENATE CANDIDATE BACKING ‘DEFUND THE POLICE’ CONTRADICT RECENT DENIALS
Commentators outside the political class were equally cutting, hammering the candidate for claiming unfamiliarity with his own financial footprint. Hen Mazzig, a pro-Israel political commentator, mocked the idea that a candidate could be unaware of the extent of his holdings. “Didn’t realize being unaware of the extent of your own wealth was a characteristic of the working class,” Mazzig said, referring to El-Sayed’s promises to represent everyday Michigan voters against corporate interests.
The debate stage only sharpened the criticism, as rival Haley Stevens pushed transparency as a central contrast in the primary. “Well, look, transparency is oh so important. This is why I have released my tax returns. My opponent, Abdul. He said that transparency is key, but yet he hasn’t released his tax returns,” Stevens said. “Look, I am the only one running for United States Senate in Michigan who is not a millionaire,” Stevens said.
https://x.com/ChuckRossDC/status/2074910665894981658
El-Sayed tried to walk back the claim while keeping his release timeline vague, noting family assets complicated the math. “If you take my assets and my wife’s assets together, then I guess they add up to something like that,” El-Sayed said in his Wednesday interview. In with MS NOW, El-Sayed pledged to release his tax documents ahead of the primary.
“We absolutely will. Sometimes finances are complicated. I can only control what I can control, and unfortunately, when it comes to tax documents, sometimes they are really complicated to get,” El-Sayed said. “We are absolutely going to release it before the primary.”
