Haley Stevens Endorses Republican Mike Rogers Days Before Michigan Senate Election, Stunning Democrats
Michigan Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens stunned party officials Sunday by endorsing Republican Mike Rogers in the state’s U.S. Senate race, days before an election that could determine the balance of power on Capitol Hill, The Associated Press reported. The endorsement came after Stevens was uninvited from a joint campaign event with Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who defeated her by a slim margin in the August primary.
“Our Democratic nominee for Senate said I was no longer welcome in his campaign and that I should stay away,” Stevens said in a video announcing the endorsement. “And he’s right. And that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today.”
Stevens endorsed Rogers after attending a Detroit-area church service with him at Perfecting Church. After the service, she told reporters, “I’m not turning my back on Democrats. It is this one vote.” Rogers, standing beside her, said he was “honored” by her support.
In the video, which was filmed from a car seat, Stevens called herself “still a very proud Democrat.” She also said, “I don’t belong in Abdul’s campaign, I do not stand with Hasan Piker,” referring to the left-wing streamer who campaigned with El-Sayed during the primary before El-Sayed distanced himself in recent months.
Staff Resignations and Party Leaders Respond
Stevens’ longtime chief of staff resigned after the endorsement, and a number of other staff members were expected to follow, a person familiar with the developments told the AP on condition of anonymity. “We are shocked and heartbroken,” the aide said in a statement. The chief of staff, who had held the job for eight years, also reaffirmed the staff’s support for El-Sayed.
Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel said the endorsement “shows that she has abandoned everything she claims to care about.” Hertel wrote, “We reject the attempts by Stevens and bad-faith actors to divide our party and undermine our momentum.” He said the party would not let such 11th-hour “distractions” deter the campaign.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who supported Stevens in the primary, denounced the move on social media. “This is a despicable betrayal from Rep. Stevens,” he wrote. Schumer also condemned what he described as “racist, Islamophobic and over-the-top false attacks on Abdul.” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin called the endorsement a “betrayal of the values of the Democratic Party.”
U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, a senior Democrat in the state who helped organize the planned joint appearance, said she asked Stevens not to attend and that Stevens told her she would abide by that. “I’m the one who pulled it because it had become way too distracting,” Dingell said in a telephone interview before Stevens appeared with Rogers. “This is not how I was going to spend my weekend before the election, to be perfectly frank.”
El-Sayed: “None of This Matters”
El-Sayed dismissed the endorsement when reporters asked about it later Sunday, saying he was focused on issues voters care about, such as the high cost of living. “At the end of the day I actually don’t think about Haley Stevens,” he said, adding later: “None of this matters.” While Stevens appeared with Rogers, El-Sayed campaigned a few miles away at a different house of worship alongside Dingell, Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow.
Trump and Republicans Praise Stevens
President Donald Trump, who backs Rogers, praised Stevens in a Truth Social post, calling her “a Highly Respected Democrat.” He wrote that her support from Black and Jewish voters in Michigan is “virtually unprecedented.” “Haley said what few people are willing to say,” Trump wrote. “She showed great and almost unprecedented loyalty to the Great People of Michigan with what she did. It’s a thing called bravery, and few people have it like just displayed by Congresswoman Haley Stevens!”
Republican National Committee spokesman Hunter Lovell said in a statement that Democrats who feel abandoned by El-Sayed “have a home” with Rogers. “When Congresswoman Haley Stevens, who ran against Abdul El-Sayed and knows him better than anyone, stands with Mike Rogers, Michigan should take notice,” he said.
How the Rift Developed
The Democratic primary was among the bitterest of the year, with each candidate accusing the other of personal attacks and tens of millions of dollars in outside spending. That included money from the super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which backed Stevens. Stevens is a staunch supporter of Israel, while El-Sayed is a fierce critic of it. Some in the Jewish community have also criticized El-Sayed over past remarks about a Michigan synagogue attack and his appearances with Piker.
Although Stevens pledged after the primary to help El-Sayed however she could, the two had not appeared together publicly since a unity breakfast two days after his August win. Last week, Stevens’ fiancé, Jason Turkish, said publicly that he would vote for Rogers. Stevens later reaffirmed her support for El-Sayed in a national television interview, while urging his campaign to “shut out the hate and call it out.”
On Friday, Stevens released a statement calling on El-Sayed to condemn an ad by an independent left-wing group that linked U.S. support for Israel to high grocery prices. “Abdul promises to get money out of politics,” she wrote. “He can begin by getting Israel out of his explanation for everything Michigan cannot afford.” El-Sayed responded that Stevens “seems intent on relitigating a primary that ended three months ago.” He said his campaign did not make the ad and that “I do not agree with the contents of that ad.”
What Is at Stake
El-Sayed, a former Michigan public health official, faces Rogers, a former congressman, for the seat held by retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters. Keeping Michigan in Democratic hands is vital to the party’s effort to win a majority for the final two years of Trump’s second term. Early voting has been underway since Oct. 24, before the latest tensions resurfaced, which complicates efforts to deliver a unified closing message in crucial areas such as Detroit. Stevens defeated El-Sayed in Wayne County, which includes Detroit, and in neighboring Oakland County during the primary, drawing support from Black and Jewish voters who are important parts of the Democratic coalition.
Prediction markets reflected the uncertainty Sunday. On Polymarket, El-Sayed’s odds of winning stood at 74% and Rogers’ at 27% as of Sunday afternoon. On Kalshi, El-Sayed’s odds fell from 76.5% shortly before the endorsement to 67.8% shortly afterward, then recovered to 72% by Sunday afternoon. It remains unclear how much the late endorsement will move actual votes.