Michigan Senate Race Upended as Haley Stevens Backs Mike Rogers
Democratic U.S. Representative Haley Stevens broke with her party on Sunday to endorse Republican Mike Rogers in the high-stakes Michigan Senate race, dealing a surprise blow to her former primary rival, Abdul El-Sayed, just days before the election. Nettavisen reported that the endorsement follows a feud that escalated after El-Sayed’s campaign asked Stevens not to attend a planned joint appearance. The midterm elections take place on Tuesday.
The defection creates a volatile new dynamic in a battleground state essential to the Democratic Party’s narrow majority in the U.S. Senate. Republicans currently control 53 of the 100 seats in the chamber, meaning Democrats must net four seats to regain control. Democrats must defend the seat currently held by an outgoing Democratic senator while picking up additional seats elsewhere to maintain control of the chamber. With the election two days away, the sudden fracture among Michigan Democrats threatens to complicate the path to victory for El-Sayed. The big question is whether this can help Rogers and the Republicans cross the finish line in the Michigan Senate race and potentially help Republicans retain power in the Senate.
The Breaking Point in Detroit
The public split materialized after El-Sayed’s campaign asked Stevens to stay away from a scheduled joint church appearance Sunday that was meant to project party unity following a primary contest, according to Aftenposten.
I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today. pic.twitter.com/pQgfSBuhOJ
Before the split, Stevens had asked El-Sayed to condemn an advertisement claiming high food prices resulted from U.S. support for Israel, a demand El-Sayed satisfied on Saturday when he stated he did not support the ad’s content. However, El-Sayed stated on Saturday that he did not want to see Stevens in the home stretch of the campaign, explaining that he did not want any distractions. Shortly afterward, Stevens published a video on X announcing her support for Rogers.
Reactions and Staff Resignations Within the Democratic Party
Donald Trump weighed in on Truth Social to praise the decision as huge, confirming plans to call and thank Stevens and stating he would welcome her into the Republican Party. Trump also used Truth Social to claim that Wayne County in Michigan is among the most corrupt voting districts in the United States, alleging that miracles happen there with more votes cast than voters, and describing El-Sayed as a communist who hates Jews and Israel and makes the Democrats’ crazy policies even worse.
Outlook and Expert Analysis
TV 2 noted that while opinion polls have held El-Sayed as a clear favorite against Rogers, the persistent volatility of the electorate leaves the final outcome uncertain as voters head to the polls on Tuesday. TV 2’s U.S. expert Eirik Bergesen described the development as a dramatic escalation of the internal dispute among Democrats right before election day, noting that the situation is obviously not in the interest of the Democratic Party or El-Sayed, and suggesting that El-Sayed should have anticipated the fallout and secured her support.
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