Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) dropped a bombshell in the Michigan Senate race as she threw her support behind Republican Mike Rogers just two days before Election Day.
The congresswoman had originally been scheduled to appear with Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed at a rally brokered by Democratic Reps. James Clyburn (S.C.) and Debbie Dingell (Mich.) designed to smooth over tensions between the primary opponents. But El-Sayed disinvited Stevens from the event after she criticized him online and urged him to condemn an ad blaming U.S. support for Israel for the high cost of groceries.
The ad was produced by an outside progressive group and not El-Sayed's campaign. El-Sayed has distanced himself from it and said he didn't agree with the content but stopped short of a full condemnation.
“Abdul was very clear. He said, ‘Don’t come,’” Stevens said Sunday.
Instead, Stevens began her day with an appearance with Rogers for a service at Detroit's Perfecting Church before endorsing him. She cited various factors, including El-Sayed's past campaign appearance with controversial left-wing Twitch streamer Hasan Piker.
“As you may have seen, 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. And that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today,” she said in a video posted to social media Sunday.
CNN host Anderson Cooper pressed Stevens on Sunday night about what changed since she wrote in an X post in August that, "Mike Rogers will be another rubber stamp for Donald Trump’s dangerous agenda. We can’t afford to give MAGA another Senate seat in November.”
"Well, why is it OK to have the Democratic Party and a top nominee, you know, ejecting, you know, this type of, or injecting rather, this type of anger and lack of kindness?" she replied.
The reaction from fellow Democrats has been swift and furious. Multiple members of Stevens's office, including her longtime chief of staff, resigned following her decision.
“Haley Stevens’ decision to campaign with Rogers—a man who has repeatedly sold out Michigan’s working class, wants to pass a national abortion ban, and has pledged to be a loyal vote for [President] Trump’s agenda—shows that she has abandoned everything she claims to care about," said Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel.
Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin (Mich.) said in a statement on X, "anyone who makes an election this important about themselves, and not Michiganders and our democracy, should think hard about whether they are serving the greater good."
Politico reported that several House Democrats said they support removing Stevens from the caucus or having leadership punish her somehow over the endorsement.
Stevens defended her decision in comments to reporters.
“It’s my personal and private decision. I still love the party. I’ve done a ton for the party,” Stevens said. “I’ve voted for the party over and over and over again. I’m going to continue to do that as I fill out my term. Everyone should be fired up for Democrats.”
Rogers needs the help, if polls are any indication.
The final New York Times/Siena poll of the cycle, released on Sunday, showed El Sayed up 11 points on the former congressman. Decision Desk HQ gives El Sayed a 76 percent chance of replacing Sen. Gary Peters (D), and he leads Rogers in the polling average by about 4.5 points.
Still, the gap is generally within the margin of error, and a small polling error could result in a big change in the outcome.
Rogers welcomed Stevens's support, saying he was "honored" by her endorsement. He called it an example of "courage in politics."
El-Sayed, meanwhile, brushed off the endorsement, saying he's focused on issues in his state.
“This is a state of 10 million people who deserve a lot better from the government. I’m a lot more focused on the 9,999,998 that are not the ones you guys are talking about,” he told reporters.
Democrats need to net at least four seats to win back control, and a loss in the Great Lakes State would only make the job harder. The party went through a divisive primary between the progressive El-Sayed and moderate Stevens that was ultimately decided by less than 1 percentage point.
Whether the endorsement will have much of an effect is just one of many questions hanging over Election Day. The Hill's Caroline Vakil dives into other key questions and storylines to watch as votes come in. Insiders can sign up and read here.
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