Michigan Democrat Haley Stevens Endorses Republican Mike Rogers for Senate

Democratic U.S. Representative Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers on 1 November 2026, two days before Michigan voters choose a successor to retiring Senator Gary Peters. Stevens, who lost the Democratic primary to Abdul El-Sayed in August, appeared with Rogers at Perfecting Church in Detroit and then posted a video stating that El-Sayed had 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.

Stevens described the decision as one about standing with the country rather than with a campaign she said had turned hostile. She noted that 90 percent of her votes in the House would still be with Democrats, but that her Senate vote would go to Rogers. She also referenced left-wing streamer Hasan Piker, saying she did not stand with him. Rogers called the endorsement an honour and said the two had spoken by phone that morning. The appearance took place on “family and friends day” at the predominantly Black church on Detroit’s east side.

The public break followed weeks of friction over an outside group’s advertisement that linked U.S. military aid to Israel with rising grocery prices. Stevens had demanded that El-Sayed condemn the ad; he rejected the demand and later indicated she would not be welcome at a planned unity event. Stevens had initially said she would support the nominee after the primary. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the endorsement a “despicable betrayal.” Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel said Stevens had abandoned the working-class priorities she previously claimed to support and noted Rogers’s past positions on abortion and alignment with Donald Trump’s agenda. Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin described it as a betrayal of party values.

Michigan’s Senate race is one of the closest contests that will determine control of the chamber. Democrats hold a narrow path to a majority; a Republican win in Michigan would make that path more difficult. Stevens’s cross-party move supplies Rogers with a visual of bipartisan support in a state where margins have been tight in recent cycles. El-Sayed, a physician and former public-health official, had consolidated most of the Democratic establishment after the primary but faced persistent questions from some Jewish and moderate voters over the Israel-related ad and associated rhetoric. Stevens’s fiancé, Jason Turkish, had already signalled support for Rogers and attended an event with the Republican and Senator Ted Cruz the previous week.

The timing leaves little room for either side to adjust messaging before early voting ends and Election Day arrives on 3 November. Rogers has run on economic issues and border security; El-Sayed has emphasised health care, wages and opposition to certain foreign-aid packages. Stevens’s decision does not change the ballot, but it removes a prominent Democratic surrogate from El-Sayed’s column in the final 48 hours. Michigan’s Democratic leadership has moved to isolate the endorsement and reaffirm support for El-Sayed. Whether the episode shifts any measurable share of undecided or moderate voters will be visible only after results are tallied.

Stevens remains a member of the House Democratic caucus for the remainder of the current term. Her public statement that she will continue to vote with the party on most issues while casting her Senate ballot for Rogers has produced internal calls for her removal from the caucus. The immediate effect is confined to the Senate contest, but the episode has sharpened questions about discipline inside the Michigan Democratic Party heading into the next cycle.