Michigan Democrat Haley Stevens Endorses Republican Mike Rogers Days Before Midterms

Democratic Representative Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Mike Rogers for Michigan's U.S. Senate seat on Sunday, two days before voters decide control of Congress. Stevens lost the August Democratic primary to Abdul El-Sayed after a bitter contest. She had previously said she would back the nominee.

Stevens appeared with Rogers at Perfecting Church in Detroit. In a video posted afterward, she said El-Sayed told her she was no longer welcome in his campaign. "And he's right, and that's why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today," she said. She described the Democratic nominee's approach as inconsistent with what she sees as Michigan values and referenced associations with streamer Hasan Piker.

Rogers called the endorsement an honor and said the two had spoken by phone that morning. The race is one of the closest Senate contests of the cycle. Republicans hold a narrow majority; Michigan is among the seats that could determine which party controls the chamber after Tuesday's midterms.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the move a "despicable betrayal." Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel said Stevens had abandoned positions she previously held, including on abortion and opposition to Trump-aligned priorities. El-Sayed's campaign had earlier clashed with Stevens over an outside advertisement that linked U.S. military aid to Israel with rising grocery prices. Stevens labeled the ad antisemitic; El-Sayed rejected its framing.

Stevens insisted she remains a Democrat and that most of her votes will still align with the party. She framed her Senate vote as one that prioritizes the state over party discipline. The primary had already split Michigan Democrats. Stevens entered it with support from the Senate Democratic campaign arm. The late endorsement adds a public rupture in the final stretch of a race both parties treat as decisive for Senate math.

Voters head to the polls on Tuesday. The Michigan outcome will sit alongside other competitive races as the parties count seats for the final two years of the current presidential term. Stevens' switch does not change the ballot, but it removes a prominent Democratic surrogate from El-Sayed's closing argument and supplies Rogers with a cross-party visual in the last hours of campaigning.