Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed has a long history of attending events hosted by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) despite his insistence that he is not a socialist.

Between 2017 and 2020, El-Sayed attended and spoke at six events held by the DSA, including a 2019 fundraiser which he headlined. Despite the longstanding relationship, El-Sayed has distanced himself from the DSA when interviewed by the press and outright rejected being labeled as a “socialist.”

“I’m not technically or practically DSA,” El-Sayed told the Wall Street Journal earlier this month. In an interview with CNN, he similarly stated that “I am not somebody who is a socialist. I believe in capitalism, I just believe that capitalism has to be regulated.”

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While El-Sayed has made a point to separate himself from the DSA, the organization made it clear that the two were close.

At the 2019 event, which raised $10,000 for the organization, El-Sayed was described by DSA organizers as “a longtime friend of Detroit DSA.” He was photographed smiling next to Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a self-described socialist, behind a table with a poster on it depicting a hand labeled “DSA” choking a snake labeled “capitalism.”

El-Sayed’s first recorded appearance at a DSA event was during his run for Michigan governor in 2017. Other DSA events he spoke at focused on Medicare for All and the Green New Deal.

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Abdul El-Sayed, candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan, speaks before U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., takes the stage at Mumford High School on May 3, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Sarah Rice/Getty Images)

The Washington Free Beacon first reported on El-Sayed’s attendance at the DSA events.

El-Sayed faces Rep. Haley Stevens, a moderate, in the state’s Democratic Senate primary. Some have speculated that his efforts to distance himself from the DSA are part of a strategy to appeal to Michigan’s relatively evenly split electorate.

In addition to his years-long relationship with the DSA, self-described socialists have also thrown their support behind El-Sayed.

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Retiring Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., has abandoned his neutrality in Michigan’s high-stakes Democratic Senate primary, backing U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, pictured left, as party leaders rally to stop progressive rival Abdul El-Sayed, pictured right, from winning the nomination. (AP Photo/Kristen Norman)

Sen. Bernie Sanders, for instance, endorsed El-Sayed on the same day he launched his campaign for Michigan’s Senate seat. The Vermont senator also endorsed El-Sayed’s ill-fated gubernatorial bid.

El-Sayed explained at greater length in an interview with Politico that, while he agrees with many of the policies put forward by DSA-aligned politicians, he remains a capitalist at heart.

“I don’t have to be a socialist to think that big corporations shouldn’t be able to nickel and dime us at every turn. I don’t have to be a socialist to believe that everybody in the richest, most powerful country in the world can have guaranteed health insurance,” he told reporter Dasha Burns. “​​Like again, maybe I’m just making the mistake of trying to be nuanced in our politics, but I believe that we can have healthcare, that we can regulate on the biggest corporations in the world, that we can make it easier for you to make your first million rather than for Elon Musk to make a trillion. And that doesn’t make me a socialist. That just makes me somebody who wants government to work for people.”

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El-Sayed himself very well could be a millionaire, with recently released tax returns showing that he and his wife collectively earned $686,069 in 2025. The Senate hopeful also has an expansive collection of luxury watches.

The El-Sayed campaign did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Tuesday.