During an Election Day appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg agreed that rhetoric and campaign decisions from Democratic Party Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed would be “disqualifying” for him.
Host Joe Kernen asked whether some of El-Sayed’s comments or his association with far-left content creator Hasan Piker would be disqualifying for Buttigieg, and whether Buttigieg would distance himself. “The answer to your question is yes. And again, one thing I find is that I never meet somebody that I agree with on 100 percent of everything,” Buttigieg responded.
He continued by affirming electoral support for El-Sayed despite what he characterized as “disqualifying” views, however, over Republican nominee Mike Rogers, citing differences on health care and the Affordable Care Act
This exchange followed earlier differences between the two Democrats. In an October 8 debate, El-Sayed was asked whether Israel or Iran posed the greater threat to the United States. He called it a “ridiculous hypothetical” and stated, “I think both of them have proven dangerous in their own way. One [Iran] at risk of attacking us, one [Israel] getting us into wars we have no business fighting.”
During an October 14 appearance on Fox News, Buttigieg was shown a shortened version of that answer and a wildly different answer than El-Sayed. “Yeah, Iran is our enemy. Israel is not. They’re an ally, so that’s pretty clear to me,” the former secretary said.
POLL: Should Trump Cut Off Aid To Countries That Side With Iran Over America?
Pete Buttigieg says Abdul El-Sayed refusing to denounce Hasan Piker is disqualifying.
CNBC: The association with Hasan Piker that El-Sayed has, wouldn’t that be disqualifying for you? Would you distance yourself?
BUTTIGIEG: “The answer to your question is Yes.” pic.twitter.com/TbM3VD12mE
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) November 3, 2026
He similarly added that he was “not sure” why the question was difficult for El-Sayed, noted he does not agree with any candidate 100 percent of the time, and said he would still vote for El-Sayed over Rogers because of health care positions.
El-Sayed has also faced scrutiny over campaigning with Hasan Piker during the Democratic primary, including joint events and a content-creator gathering. El-Sayed later said he disagrees with Piker “on many, many things,” and had “no plans” to campaign with him in the general election.
Piker has made multiple statements regarding designated or commonly described Islamist groups. He has said “Hamas is a thousand times better than a fascist settler colonial apartheid state,” affirmed that he “would vote for Hamas over Israel every single time,” stated he has “no issue” with Hezbollah as a resistance group, and described Houthi actions as “resistance” that was “not only moral, but it’s just.”
He previously said America “deserved 9/11,” a remark he later walked back as inappropriate while attributing the underlying critique to U.S. foreign policy.
In addition, El-Sayed’s sister, Eman Abdelhadi made several social media posts in support of the Muslim Brotherhood — an international extremist organization that inspired groups like Al Qaeda and seeks to implement Sharia Law across the globe — between 2012 and 2013.
“Had an amazing talk with my mom about her activism in the Muslim Brotherhood during the early 70s while she was in college #respect,” Abdelhadi wrote in one post. “My family has long been MB,” she said in another.
