Haley Stevens Dumps El-Sayed, Endorses Republican Mike Rogers. Schumer Calls Her the ‘Despicable’ One

Written By TNT Staff, Posted on November 2, 2026

Two days before Michigan picks a senator, the Democrat who nearly won the party’s nomination has endorsed the Republican. Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) backed former Rep. Mike Rogers on Sunday, Nov. 1, over Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who beat her in the August primary by less than a point.

On Sunday TNT reported that El-Sayed’s campaign told Stevens to stay away after she demanded he condemn a Rebellion PAC ad saying families should “set that $7 aside for killing Palestinians.” Within hours, she appeared with Rogers instead.

The endorsement

Stevens attended a service with Rogers at Perfecting Church in Detroit, then posted a video endorsing him, AP and The Guardian reported. El-Sayed, she said, had made clear she was no longer welcome in his campaign. “And he’s right,” she said, according to Newsweek. “And that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today.”

“Who we are as Michiganders is not hate,” she added, saying that is not what Michigan is getting from its Democratic nominee, Vox reported.

She says she has not left her party. “It’s my personal and private decision. I still love the party,” she told reporters, per Newsweek, adding that about “90 percent” of her ballot would go to Democrats.

From unity pledge to Rogers endorsement. Sources: Vox, NBC News, Newsweek, The Washington Post. (TNT graphic)

Why she broke

Stevens, a longtime supporter of Israel, told The New York Times her doubts returned after an Oct. 8 debate in which El-Sayed would not say whether Israel or Iran was the greater threat to the United States, Vox reported. He called the question a “ridiculous hypothetical.”

Then came the Oct. 23 egg ad from Rebellion PAC, the group fronted by Young Turks host Cenk Uygur. El-Sayed’s campaign said it had no affiliation with the ad. On Saturday he went further: “That ad was not made by me, and I do not agree with the contents of that ad.” Stevens wanted an outright condemnation. She got a disinvitation.

The party’s answer

Democrats moved fast. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who backed Stevens in the primary, wrote on X: “This is a despicable betrayal from Rep. Stevens. Senate Democrats are united in our support for Abdul El-Sayed,” The Washington Post and Newsweek reported.

Michigan Democratic Party chair Curtis Hertel Jr. went further. “Congresswoman Stevens is not a current member of the Michigan Democratic Party, nor will she be in the future,” he posted, per the Post.

Her own office emptied out. “As of this morning, many members of our team have resigned, including myself,” said Justin German, her chief of staff for eight years, per Newsweek. Vox reported that more than half of her congressional staff resigned.

The fallout, within hours. Sources: The Washington Post, Newsweek, Vox. (TNT graphic)

Schumer also said Democrats are “united in our total revulsion at the racist, Islamophobic, and over-the-top false attacks on Abdul by Republicans,” Vox reported. President Trump has repeatedly called El-Sayed a “jihadist,” and repeated it Sunday, according to Vox. That smear deserves the criticism it gets.

TNT’s view

The following is opinion. Endorsing the other party’s nominee two days out is hard to square with party loyalty. But look at where the fury landed. A pro-Israel Democrat said an ad blaming grocery prices on “killing Palestinians” crossed a line, and asked her nominee to condemn it plainly. He would only say he disagreed with it. The Senate Democratic leader called her endorsement “a despicable betrayal.” His statement, as Newsweek quoted it, said nothing about the ad.

Party loyalty is not a principle. Stevens decided a line had been crossed and acted on it, at the cost of her staff, her party card and probably her future in Democratic politics. Voters can judge whether she was right. They should at least notice which offense drew the louder condemnation.

The race remains close; polls have shown El-Sayed narrowly ahead, Vox reported. Michigan votes Tuesday.

TNT Staff