LANSING, MI - When Pamela Nelson, 71, of DeWitt, heard nobody had challenged Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abdul El-Sayed's eligibility for the ballot despite a possible residency issue, she decided that person would be her.

"I feel like I'm the least qualified person to be asking this... I wish that someone else would do it. But since nobody else has, I'll do it," she said.

She had read news reports about the question over El-Sayed's eligibility. The constitution requires a candidate for governor to "have been a registered elector in this state for four years next preceding his election," and a report from the publication Bridge revealed El-Sayed had lived in New York and been a registered voter there as late as 2015.

El-Sayed sought a court opinion over the matter, and the Secretary of State argued that since nobody had challenged his eligibility, his bringing a lawsuit against them was premature. The El-Sayed campaign inaccurately framed the matter as having been settled, while the Michigan Democratic Party called it "a positive step forward." The court has yet to rule.

After seeing a report on the case, Nelson called up the Secretary of State's office and asked who could file a challenge. When she found out any registered voter could file a challenge, she decided she would.

She sent the Secretary of State a notarized letter asking for them to investigate whether El-Sayed was eligible for the ballot. Asked if she considered the letter a formal challenge, Nelson said yes, she did.

But it's not clear exactly what the Secretary of State will do with the letter from here.

"Certainly, we're reviewing the letter and what it seeks. It does ask at one point for an investigation, so that's what we're reviewing," said Secretary of State spokesperson Fred Woodhams.

The deadline to file challenges is May 1, he said, and asked about a timeline for reviewing Nelson's letter he said it would "certainly be a few weeks."

Adam Joseph, a spokesman for El-Sayed, said in a statement, "As we have maintained, Abdul is 100% eligible to be Governor of Michigan. He has been continuously registered to vote in Michigan since he was 18, and has maintained residency in Michigan since childhood. We have not been notified as to how the Secretary of State will handle this request, but as we have said before any challenge to Abdul's eligibility will be unsuccessful."

In her letter, Nelson, a retired state worker, wrote that El-Sayed's candidacy was now open to challengers and she hoped somebody "with better standing than myself" will step forward. She hopes, she said, that people will join her.

What she's hoping to avoid is a scenario where El-Sayed wins the Democratic primary and then after that the Republicans challenge his candidacy, and the Democrats are left without a candidate, she said.

Nelson has donated to Whitmer's campaign, she said, but did this independently. In fact, Whitmer's campaign called her when it became aware of the challenge and asked her to withdraw the challenge. She declined.

"As a registered voter I have a right to know whether this man is qualified," she said.

Whitmer's campaign confirmed it had asked her to withdraw the challenge. Spokesman Zack Pohl said the campaign thinks this race should be decided by voters.

"We do not support Ms. Nelson's action. The campaign has spoken with her directly, and strongly urged her to withdraw her challenge immediately so we can focus on getting things done for the people of Michigan. Gretchen has been proud to share a debate stage with Abdul, and she believes this race should be decided by the voters of Michigan," said Pohl in a statement.

The Michigan Democratic Party through a spokesman declined comment for this article.

Nelson is a Democratic voter and will support El-Sayed, she said, if he wins the primary and is found to be eligible for the ballot.

Note: This story has been updated to include comment from El-Sayed's campaign.