Secretary of State Ruth Johnson’s office provided El-Sayed’s voter and driving records to Bridge, but would not interpret them. Office spokesman Fred Woodhams said those who believe candidates are ineligible can file challenges to the state Bureau of Elections.

No such challenge has yet been filed, he said.

‘Nightmare scenario’

The son of Egyptian immigrants, El-Sayed has become a favorite of the progressive wing of the Democratic Party associated with 2016 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. His campaign has attracted international interest for both his life story – a Muslim running for governor in a state that helped elect Donald Trump president in 2016 – and his electric speeches.

The Guardian newspaper of Britain went so far as to proclaim him the “next Obama,” writing in August about his “rhetorical style and charisma that draws easy comparisons” to the former president. Half of the $1.6 million he’s raised in his campaign has come from donors outside Michigan, a total of nearly $805,000, state campaign records show.

And this month, his campaign got a boost when a veteran of Sanders’ presidential campaign, Claire Sandberg, became the El-Sayed’s deputy campaign manager, while a poll last week from the Glengariff Group Inc. for The Detroit News showed El-Sayed running neck-and-neck in a hypothetical race against Republican Attorney General Bill Schuette.

But questions surrounding El-Sayed’s candidacy are an open secret among Democrats, particularly in southeast Michigan. Bridge spoke to five prominent Democrats, all of whom echo the opinion of the election lawyers that eligibility may threaten El-Sayed’s campaign.

One party leader said he fears a “nightmare scenario” in which El-Sayed comes from behind and wins the Democratic Party primary in August, then is knocked off the November general election ballot through a lawsuit brought by Republicans.

“There will be a court case, guaranteed. The only question is who is going to step up to take him out,” said a Democratic elected official. Like most others who discussed the situation with Bridge, he did so anonymously because he didn’t want to be caught up in a controversy.

Jonathan Kinloch, Democratic chairman of the 13th Congressional District, said “it is definitely concerning that money is being raised when there may be a shadow on a candidate’s ability to make it onto the ballot. “

“It is an utmost obligation of candidates to first be clear of their ability to become a candidate before raising substantial money,” said Kinloch, who is also the chairman of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers.

“I do intend to reach out to El-Sayed and other party officials regarding this issue. I’m sure Abdul El-Sayed has a battery of lawyers who stand ready to bring resolution to this question.”

Democrat gubernatorial candidate Shri Thanedar said the eligibility questions are concerning.

“We’ve got to follow the law, whatever it is, to be qualified to be on the ballot,” Thanedar, an Ann Arbor businessman, told Bridge. “I’m not qualified to say whether (El-Sayed) should be able to be on the ballot or not, but we should know (for sure.)”

Whitmer’s campaign declined comment, while Bridge couldn’t reach the other declared Democratic candidate, Bill Cobbs. Brandon Dillon, chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party, did not return a phone call seeking comment.

El-Sayed’s campaign argues the eligibility questions are driven by unnamed “establishment” Democratic Party leaders who are “pushing backroom coronations and deals to promote candidates that fall in line around the usual ‘bought and sold’ brand of politics.”

“Let’s be clear, this is a political attack, and nothing more, and it falls in line with a long history of attacks on certain kinds of people when they aspire to leadership in our democracy,” Joseph, the spokesman, wrote in a statement.

The statement likened the eligibility questions to those raised by Donald Trump and others about Barack Obama’s birth certificate when he was president.

“While we knew the attacks were coming, we didn’t think they would come in the form of insider Democrats using Trump’s birther tactics,” the statement read.

Complicated timeline

Thanedar, also campaigning as a progressive, has criticized El-Sayed at public forums for not voting in the March 8, 2016 Democratic presidential primary, when Sanders upset eventual nominee Hillary Clinton.

Last April, El-Sayed told WKAR-TV’s “Off the Record” public television show he would have voted for Sanders in 2016 had it not been for long polling lines in Detroit.

“I tried several times, and I had work to do in Detroit,” El-Sayed said. “I went to polls in the morning, and they told me there was a couple hours’ wait. Then I tried at lunch and, again, there were several hours wait.”

Abdul El-Sayed discusses trying to vote for Bernie Sanders in Michigan from The Center for Michigan on Vimeo.