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A Michigan student confronted Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed over his position on Iran during a town hall Wednesday, invoking his family’s stated persecution by the Iranian regime before repeatedly pressing the candidate to say whether he stood with Iranians opposing the government.
Iman Dashti, who identified himself as Persian, told El-Sayed during a town hall at the University of Michigan that members of his family had suffered under Iran’s government.
“My cousin was hunted in the streets of Iran by the IRGC because her hijab wasn’t on right,” Dashti said. He also alleged that her uncle had been sentenced to death and received 50 lashes under the Iranian government.
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US Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan Abdul El-Sayed speaks with reporters during a Student Meet and Greet at the Michigan Theatre in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on August 26, 2026. (JEFF KOWALSKY / AFP via Getty Images)
Dashti then confronted El-Sayed over leaked audio from earlier this year in which he said he did not want to comment on the death of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei because “there are a lot of people in Dearborn who are sad today.”
“That silence had a gaping hole in our community,” Dashti told El-Sayed Wednesday.
He asked whether he regretted that silence, whether he would renounce people who held vigils supporting Khamenei and whether he stood “unequivocally against the IRGC” and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
El-Sayed responded by arguing that the United States has too often acted as “the world’s policeman” while saying he supported movements for democracy and freedom abroad.
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Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, speaks at the Michigan Democratic Nominating Convention in Lansing, Mich., on Aug. 29, 2026. (Anadolu via Getty Images)
“One can disagree with the governance of a foreign country. One can stand in solidarity with freedom and democracy movements,” El-Sayed said.
He went on to reject U.S.-led regime change in Iran.
“I will always stand for and with democratic movements always,” El-Sayed said. “But I also don’t believe that we were in the right to go to war to topple the government of Iran. It was not our responsibility to do. It is the responsibility of the people of Iran to decide what their leadership should look like.”
Dashti pressed him again. “You stand with us?” he asked.
“I will always stand with movements for freedom and democracy,” El-Sayed responded, before again warning against U.S. involvement in regime change.
“We should not be in the business of regime change,” he said.
El-Sayed added moments later, “I want freedom and democracy for the people of Iran, no question. But I want that to be done by the people of Iran, coming together as a community to decide how to create democratic change in their society.”
Digital reached out to El-Sayed’s campaign for additional comment on the exchange and attempted to reach Dashti through Instagram.
El-Sayed, who won Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary in August, is running against Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers for the seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters. The contest has drawn substantial national attention and spending.
The Iran confrontation was one of several notable exchanges during Wednesday’s “Students vs. Billionaires” town hall at El-Sayed’s alma mater.
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Abdul El-Sayed, US Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan, speaks during the Michigan Democratic Party’s 2026 nominating convention in Lansing, Michigan, US, on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. (Sarah Rice/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
While discussing public health infrastructure, El-Sayed appeared to make a prediction about the party and the gender that will win the White House in 2028.
“I’m looking forward to working with the next Democratic president when she takes office in 2029,” El-Sayed said, adding that he hoped to work with that administration to modernize the nation’s public health infrastructure.
El-Sayed did not identify whom he had in mind.
His remarks came as former Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 Democrat presidential nominee, returned to Michigan to campaign with El-Sayed. Harris has not announced a 2028 presidential campaign.
El-Sayed also criticized President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance during the event.
“Donald Trump and JD Vance can’t seem to keep my name out their mouth,” El-Sayed said. “They don’t really know how to say it, though, which is fine, because I believe in teaching opportunities.”
Trump and other national Republicans have repeatedly targeted El-Sayed during the midterm campaign, while El-Sayed has responded by criticizing the president.
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“As he noted in his response, Abdul will always stand with movements for freedom and democracy and he condemns government anti-free speech violence,” Roxie Richner, El-Sayed campaign spokesperson said in a statement to Digital.
“Abdul has also been clear that the United States should not be in the business of spending our tax dollars abroad on regime change wars that take our servicemembers’ lives, waste our tax dollars, and raise our prices. He believes American taxpayer dollars are best spent here at home to invest in infrastructure, education, and healthcare.”
