WATCH: El-Sayed Lays Hands On Reporter During Election Day

Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed laid hands on Sky News reporter James Matthews during Election Night coverage on Tuesday, berating the British journalist for daring to ask questions as he bluntly declared he wanted “zero votes” from people in the United Kingdom, hours before he won.

Sky News went public with the video, with several angles showing an angry El-Sayed stepping uncomfortably close to Matthews before he placed both hands on the reporter’s shoulders and scolded him for attempting to cover an election in the United States.

Michigan’s Democratic candidate for Senate Abdul El-Sayed confronted @jamesmatthewsky, telling him he wouldn’t answer his questions as he wants “zero” votes in the UK.

Watch the heated exchange between the two.

Watch our live coverage of the US midterms➡️ https://t.co/hrELyhg17W

— Sky News (@SkyNews) November 3, 2026

“Are you registered to vote in the state of Michigan?” El-Sayed asked, immediately getting in Matthews’ face. “Are you registered to vote?”

“I’m not, I’m a journalist —” Matthews tried to respond, but El-Sayed quickly cut him off, placing a hand on each of the reporter’s shoulders.

“So why would I care to have a conversation with you?” El-Sayed asked, as his tone grew increasingly condescending. “Explain it to me why would I care to have a conversation with you? You’re a journalist? In the UK? You know how many votes I want to get in the UK? Zero! I’m never running for office in the UK. So I actually do not care what you think, or the questions you ask, you literally —”

El Sayed took his hands off Matthews’ shoulders to clap in his face as he emphasized the words “do not care.”

“This election matters to the world,” Matthews said, keeping his cool. “You’re bidding to be a senator —”

“A senator in where, what country?” El-Sayed asked, putting a hand on Matthews again as he spoke.

“In the United States of America,” Matthews replied. “The leader of the free world.”

Putting his other hand on Matthews’ other shoulder, El Sayed continued to talk down to him.

“What country are you in?” he asked.

“I’m based in the United States,” Matthews shot back.

“No, no, no, no, no,” El-Sayed interrupted. “But, but, but, but, but you report for where? Where are your viewers?”

Matthews pointed out that his viewers were all over the world, but El Sayed kept berating him anyway.

“Sky News is not viewed in the United States of America,” he claimed, talking over Matthews’ protests. “It’s only viewed in the U.K. Like five people watch it, my guy.”

The confrontation continued — with El-Sayed concluding the interaction by declaring that he’d answered all the questions he intended to answer and demanding that Matthews “stop chasing me around.”

Matthews pointed out that he’d only asked questions — none of which were ever actually answered — as El Sayed turned on his heel and walked away.

Turning to the camera, Matthews noted that El-Sayed had expressed interest in serving on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — meaning his responsibilities as a U.S. senator would have international implications, and he would likely face more questions from international media. His behavior thus far suggests that such interactions are likely to be unfriendly at best.

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