El-Sayed says that in a University of Michigan Republican group chat "they pay them $200" to heckle him
Abdul El-SayedDemocratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Michigan, speaking at a campaign town hall in Flint
At his October 3, 2026 town hall in Flint, as a heckler was escorted out, Abdul El-Sayed said "In a University of Michigan Republican group chat, they pay them $200 to do exactly that". HuffPost also quotes him saying "They'll pay $200 for someone to waste his money, show up and heckle me" and "I'm just saying, you deserve a better social life than that". HuffPost reported that El-Sayed suggested the heckler could be a paid protester and that it is unclear whether the heckler was there to get paid. El-Sayed did not name America Next in the remarks HuffPost quotes, and he did not say who the heckler was.
Responding to
Abdul El-Sayed said on October 3, 2026, as a heckler was removed from his Flint town hall, that in a University of Michigan Republican group chat "they pay them $200 to do exactly that," a remark HuffPost reported as El-Sayed suggesting the removed heckler could be a paid protester.
“In a University of Michigan Republican group chat, they pay them $200 to do exactly that ... They'll pay $200 for someone to waste his money, show up and heckle me ... I'm just saying, you deserve a better social life than that.”
Reporting
Original post
Where this statement fits
Did a conservative group offer College Republicans $200 each to disrupt Abdul El-Sayed's Flint town hall, as group chat messages suggest?
As of October 4, 2026, The Michigan Daily and HuffPost have reported on GroupMe messages that student Iman Dashti posted on October 1 in the University of Michigan College Republicans' main chat. Screenshots posted on X show Dashti writing that the organization America Next "reached out to me to set this up," offered everyone who came to "show out against Abdul" $100, and agreed to $200 when he asked. The messages invite members to Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed's October 3 town hall in Flint, where Dashti writes the group would "coordinate questions" and "boo him." HuffPost reports the College Republicans confirmed the messages are genuine. The group also told HuffPost that a member's advertising in the chat does not reflect the organization's values and that it "did not in any manner coordinate" with Dashti. America Next has not responded in the reporting we found, and the Rogers campaign had not responded to HuffPost when it published. A heckler was removed from the Flint event, and El-Sayed said that in a University of Michigan Republican group chat "they pay them $200 to do exactly that." As of October 4, 2026, we found no report that anyone was paid.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
HuffPost's report from the Flint town hall, written by a reporter who covered the event. It quotes El-Sayed's remarks about the group chat, reports that the College Republicans confirmed the messages are genuine while distancing themselves from Dashti, says America Next did not return a request for comment, and says the Rogers campaign had not responded by publication. The article spells Dashti's first name "Imran"; his own X account, The Michigan Daily, Fox News and the Rogers campaign's post use "Iman." The article's subtitle says a conservative PAC "said it would pay for students to travel to the event," while its text attributes the offer to Dashti's message.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Original post
About this source
A HuffPost reporter's post from the event. The videos show the crowd chanting "USA" and the removal of the heckler. Neither video includes El-Sayed's remarks about the group chat, and we could not locate video of those remarks. HuffPost's article quotes them.
Before the quotation
El-Sayed was near the end of his "Shouldn't Be This Hard" town hall in Flint. A man in a camouflage hoodie had shouted a question about taking money from the Soros family, and security escorted him out as the crowd jeered. Earlier, El-Sayed had urged the crowd to "clap for the Republicans" attending the event.
After the quotation
El-Sayed then returned to campaign messaging, telling the crowd "We've got an opportunity to build the kind of politics we need and deserve." His aides directed HuffPost to The Michigan Daily's report. HuffPost reports there is no evidence the Rogers campaign was involved in a scheme to pay hecklers. We found no report that identifies the removed heckler.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Relative to the proposition that America Next offered College Republicans members $200 each to attend and disrupt the Flint town hall, El-Sayed endorses the central claim that people in a University of Michigan Republican group chat are being paid $200 to heckle him. In the remarks HuffPost quotes, he refers to a group chat rather than to America Next, and he does not say the removed heckler was paid. Condemned fits because he states that the payment exists and criticizes it. The closest competing label is Mixed or conditional, because HuffPost describes his comment about the heckler as a suggestion, but his statement about the group chat is stated flatly.
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More from this case
Read the full caseCollege Republicans at UMich reply on X to a post about Dashti's September 23 question: "did not orchestrate any of that, nor did the Rogers campaign"
College Republicans at the University of Michigan
“Our organization did not orchestrate any of that, nor did the Rogers campaign, as he is not on their staff or on our executive board. That opportunity was presented to Iman following that viral moment and was in no part related to his attendance or actions at the previous event. We could care less if you 'believe' it or not, because that is what is true.”Read statement
College Republicans tell HuffPost that a member's chat advertising "does not reflect the values of our organization as a whole"
College Republicans at the University of Michigan
“Anything that a particular member may have advertised in our group chat does not reflect the values of our organization as a whole ... did not in any manner coordinate ... advertising or product endorsement purposes”Read statement
El-Sayed campaign spokesperson Cole Wozniak asks whether Mike Rogers "has to pay $200 per person" to draw a crowd
“Mike Rogers has to pay $200 per person to get people to show up at an event? ... Yikes. Hundreds of Michiganders show up to every single Abdul town hall for free.”Read statement
Cite this record
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- The Dispute Index
- Title
- El-Sayed says that in a University of Michigan Republican group chat "they pay them $200" to heckle him
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- https://disputeindex.com/events/4524-at-his-october-3-2026-town-hall-in
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "El-Sayed says that in a University of Michigan Republican group chat "they pay them $200" to heckle him". First published: 2026-10-04. Last updated: 2026-10-04. https://disputeindex.com/events/4524-at-his-october-3-2026-town-hall-in