Michigan Democrat Haley Stevens endorses Republican Mike Rogers for Senate

Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Mike Rogers for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat Sunday, breaking with her party’s nominee just two days before Election Day and turning a dispute with her former primary rival into a public split.

Stevens appeared alongside Rogers at a Detroit church, then announced her endorsement in a social media video. “Our Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Abdul, said that I was no longer welcome in his campaign and that I should stay away, and he’s right,” she said. “And that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today.”

The move was a sharp reversal. NBC News reported that Stevens had said just days earlier that she would support the Democratic ticket on Election Day, including Abdul El-Sayed. Rogers spokesperson Abby Ronson confirmed Stevens’ appearance with him at the church and told NBC News, “Mike welcomes her.”

Stevens narrowly lost to El-Sayed in Michigan’s Democratic primary in August, according to CBS News. The Guardian reported that party leaders had arranged for the two Democrats to appear together Sunday at a different Detroit church to demonstrate unity in the final days of their closely contested race against Rogers. That event fell apart after Stevens demanded that El-Sayed explicitly condemn an ad from an outside group linking U.S. military aid to Israel with rising grocery prices.

Stevens called the ad antisemitic, CBS News reported. El-Sayed said it “was not made by me” and that he disagreed with its contents. He also accused Stevens of “relitigating a primary that ended three months ago.” The Guardian reported that his campaign then disinvited her from its remaining events.

The dispute reflects a divide between the former rivals over U.S. support for Israel. El-Sayed has criticized Israel and its war in Gaza and supports ending U.S. military aid to the country, while Stevens strongly supports Israel, The Guardian reported. In her endorsement video, Stevens said she remained “a very proud Democrat” but did not believe El-Sayed’s campaign represented the ideals she wanted Michigan to stand for in the Senate. “Who we are as Michiganders is not hate, and is not what we are getting out from our Democratic nominee right now,” she said.

El-Sayed sought Saturday to return attention to his contest with Rogers. “I understand some folks are upset about that. I get it,” he said, according to CBS News. “But I’m here trying to beat Mike Rogers.” Rogers, for his part, praised Stevens for raising concerns about the ad, calling her “a courageous leader who deserves the respect of every Michigan voter.”

The endorsement landed as candidates made their closing appeals ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections. CBS News reported that more than 52 million Americans had already voted early, citing a University of Florida tracker. NBC News described Michigan’s Senate contest as a battleground race that could help determine which party controls the chamber.