Michigan Democratic Unity Frays as El-Sayed Tells Stevens to Stay Away
Days before a critical Senate election in Michigan, Democratic unity has fractured after progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed asked former primary rival Representative Haley Stevens to stay away from all remaining campaign events. The fallout follows a bitter primary race in August where El-Sayed edged Stevens by just one percent, capturing 48.5 percent of the vote to Stevens’s 47.5 percent, as reported by Fox News. Two people familiar with the campaign’s internal decisions told Politico that the El-Sayed campaign wants Stevens to steer clear so she does not distract from the central issues of the race.
Clashing Statements Over Israel Policy and Outside Spending
The friction intensified after a public exchange regarding a controversial political advertisement produced by an outside group, Rebellion PAC. As reported by NBC News, the grocery store-themed ad suggests that U.S. financial support for Israel is to blame for high prices at home. Stevens issued a lengthy statement on Friday criticizing El-Sayed and demanding that he formally condemn the ad and apologize for his own rhetoric connecting U.S. military support for Israel to domestic inflation. Stevens wrote that a mere disclaimer from the campaign is insufficient for her community, according to The Washington Post. El-Sayed’s campaign previously distanced itself from the outside political action committee.
In response, El-Sayed fired back on Friday, stating that Stevens appears intent on relitigating a primary that concluded three months ago. He emphasized that his campaign’s primary focus remains on affordability and health care, pointing out that his people-powered movement successfully overcame $70 million in outside spending from major corporations and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on behalf of Stevens, according to NBC News.
Dueling Campaign Priorities and Planned Event Uncertainty
Despite the escalating rhetoric, plans for a joint appearance initially materialized after senior Michigan Democrat Representative Debbie Dingell and South Carolina Representative James E. Clyburn helped broker an event. Stevens stated that Clyburn asked her to attend a Sunday gathering at a Black church in Detroit, noting she agreed to go out of respect for Clyburn. However, Stevens also demanded that El-Sayed take down a separate campaign ad featuring right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson out of respect for Michigan’s Black community, as reported by The Washington Post.
While Dingell sought to downplay the public dispute during an appearance on NBC News’ “Meet the Press NOW,” arguing that outside observers are manufacturing controversy, the immediate status of the joint appearance remained uncertain. Representatives for both El-Sayed and Stevens did not immediately respond to inquiries regarding whether the two would still appear together at the weekend event, according to NBC News and The Washington Post.