Democrat Haley Stevens endorses Republican Mike Rogers for Michigan Senate seat

Why she did it: In a video of under two minutes, Stevens said El-Sayed "said that I was no longer welcome in his campaign and that I should stay away," adding, "And he's right, and that's why I am endorsing Mike Rogers." The dispute traced to an ad from Rebellion PAC, an independent left-wing group, that linked U.S. support for Israel to higher grocery prices. Stevens called the ad antisemitic and pressed El-Sayed to condemn it. El-Sayed said his campaign did not make the ad and that he disagreed with its contents, and he accused Stevens of "relitigating a primary that ended three months ago." In her video, Stevens also said, "I do not stand with Hasan Piker," referring to the left-wing online commentator.

The uninvite: Rep. Jim Clyburn and Rep. Debbie Dingell had brokered a joint appearance for Stevens and El-Sayed in Detroit on Sunday, The Hill reported. Dingell said Stevens was asked to skip it after the dispute became a distraction and upset the church's bishop, according to Fox News. "Abdul was very clear. He said, 'Don't come,'" Stevens told reporters, per The Hill. She said she remains "a very proud Democrat" and called the endorsement "my personal and private decision."

Republican reaction: Rogers said he was "honored" and called it "more a statement about standing together against hate," NBC News reported. A Rogers spokesperson, Abby Ronson, said, "Mike welcomes her." President Trump wrote on Truth Social that Stevens "showed great and almost unprecedented loyalty to the Great People of Michigan." Fox News noted that Stevens's fiancé, Jason Turkish, had earlier endorsed Rogers over the Israel issue.

Democratic reaction: Schumer said, "Senate Democrats are united in our support for Abdul El-Sayed." Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel said the party "stands united and fully behind" El-Sayed and that Stevens "has abandoned everything she claims to care about," per The Hill. Sen. Elissa Slotkin wrote that "anyone who makes an election this important about themselves" should think hard about whether they are serving the greater good. Stevens's chief of staff, Justin German, and several staffers resigned; German said they were "shocked and heartbroken," NBC News reported. El-Sayed, campaigning with Sen. Angela Alsobrooks and Clyburn, said, "At the end of the day, I actually don't think about Haley Stevens."

How outlets framed it: Fox News led with the endorsement coming "after El-Sayed snub," putting the uninvite first. NBC News called it "a major shake-up" of the race. AP stressed that Stevens "stunned party officials." The Hill ran separate pieces on Michigan Democrats rejecting the endorsement and on El-Sayed brushing it off. All four reported both the ad dispute and the uninvite, but they differed on which came first in the story.

What the numbers say: More than 2 million Michigan votes had already been cast before the endorsement, according to NBC News data. A New York Times/Siena poll released Sunday showed El-Sayed ahead 53% to 42%, but it was taken before the endorsement, MS NOW reported; El-Sayed led by nearly 5 points in the Decision Desk HQ polling average cited by The Hill. Stevens herself told reporters, "I'm not trying to sway any election." Rogers told NewsNation, "We feel great where we are today."

What's still unknown: How many undecided or crossover voters Stevens can move this late; whether Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will respond, as NBC News reported she had not yet done so; and whether the dispute changes turnout among Jewish voters or El-Sayed's base in the Detroit area. Results come after polls close Tuesday, Nov. 3.

This is a fast-moving story; details are as NBC News, Fox News, The Hill and AP reported them on Nov. 1–2, 2026. The NYT/Siena result is as MS NOW reported it; the polling average is the Decision Desk HQ average that The Hill cited, and the early-vote figure is from NBC News data. The hero photo is Stevens's official House portrait (file photo, 2018); the Rogers photo is a 2019 file photo.