Inside Michigan’s Abdul El-Sayed-Haley Stevens Collapse

The final straw for Rep. Haley Stevens came Saturday afternoon.

She was about to participate in a unity event with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, who defeated her in a summer primary and became the Democratic nominee for Michigan Senate. Several powerful intermediaries had tried to broker peace between the former rivals, who fought over Dr. El-Sayed’s harsh criticism of Israel.

But after Ms. Stevens issued a hostile statement Friday morning calling on Dr. El-Sayed to condemn an ​​ad by a supportive PAC and make other concessions, he stood before reporters and said what his campaign had signaled privately: He no longer wanted Ms. Stevens to join him at a Detroit church on Sunday.

This was something that was not to be welcomed by Dr. El-Sayed’s senatorial campaign. It was another thing for him to say it in public.

So, Ms. Stevens did on Sunday what she told everyone she wouldn’t do. She supported former Rep. Mike Rogers, Dr. El-Sayed’s Republican opponent in a crucial race for control of the Senate.

“Abdul made it very clear that I was not welcome in his campaign, that he did not need me there, that he did not want me there,” Ms. Stevens said as she stood next to Mr. Rogers outside a black church in Detroit, where they had just attended Sunday service. “I supported the Democratic candidate and he chose to close this campaign by saying I wasn’t welcome. I’ve never been invited to a campaign event. That’s fine. You know, he’s busy. He’s running around.”