Why did Democrat Haley Stevens just support a Republican for US Senate? | News 2026 US midterm elections

A Democratic congresswoman threw her support behind a Republican in one of the most closely watched midterm elections in the United States, just two days before voters go to the polls.

Haley Stevens, who lost Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary in August, announced Sunday that she is supporting Republican Mike Rogers over her own party’s candidate, Abdul El-Sayed.

The move follows weeks of tension between the two Democrats over Israel and sparked a backlash within the party as it struggles to take control of Congress and limit President Donald Trump’s power.

Here’s what we know.

Who is Haley Stevens?

Stevens is a Democratic congresswoman from Michigan who narrowly lost the party’s Senate primary to El-Sayed, a former public health official who could become the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate.

Despite a bitter primary battle, Stevens has vowed to support El-Sayed and said last Wednesday that she still wants him to win.

This is despite the fact that her fiancé, Jason Turkish, a Jewish Democrat and civil rights lawyer, announced he would vote for Rogers. Turk – who, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) reports, donated nearly $250,000 to Democrats and Republicans this midterm cycle – accused El-Sayed of anti-Semitism, saying his rhetoric about Israel and its war in Gaza had put Jewish voters at risk.

And on Sunday, Stevens changed positions.

Why did Stevens support Republican Mike Rogers?

The move follows weeks of tensions over Israel, which became increasingly public in the final days of the campaign.

Stevens is a staunch supporter of Israel, while El-Sayed has been an outspoken critic of Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza and U.S. military aid to the country.

Their differences were also a major issue during the Democratic primaries, when a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) spent tens of millions of dollars supporting Stevens.

But the latest conflict began last week, when an independent group supporting El-Sayed, Rebellion PAC, released an ad linking U.S. military aid to Israel to Americans’ struggles with the cost of living.

The ad shows a couple shopping who decide to hand over a carton of eggs because they need to save the money to “kill Palestinians.”

Stevens called the ad anti-Semitic and demanded that El-Sayed condemn it. She also accused him of making arguments similar to those in the ad by suggesting that money spent on Israel could instead be spent on schools, health care and child care.

El-Sayed said the ad was not produced by his campaign and that he disagreed with its message, adding that Stevens was trying to revive their primary rather than focus on defeating Rogers.

Tensions came to a head on Sunday, when Stevens and El-Sayed were supposed to attend a church service together to show Democratic unity, but Stevens was not invited.

“Our Democratic Senate candidate said I was no longer welcome in his campaign and should stay away,” she said in a video on X, announcing she was going to support Rogers.

“And he’s right. And that’s why I’m endorsing Mike Rogers for U.S. Senate today.”

But Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell, who helped organize the event, said she was the one who asked Stevens not to attend, telling the Associated Press news agency that “it became way too distracting.”

Stevens also criticized El-Sayed’s association with political journalist Hasan Piker, whose uncle, Cenk Uygur, founded the PAC that released the ad.

Stevens told reporters Sunday, with Rogers at his side: “We can’t stand the hate. We can’t stand Hasan Piker.”

She insisted she was still a Democrat and planned to vote for Democratic candidates in 90 percent of the races on her ballot, but her Senate vote would go to Rogers.

How did the Democrats react?

His decision sparked an angry response from Democrats, including some of the party’s top officials.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called the endorsement a “despicable betrayal,” saying Senate Democrats remained united behind El-Sayed.

He brushed aside questions about whether Stevens had betrayed the Democratic Party, saying he was more concerned about the issues facing Michigan voters.

“At the end of the day, I’m not thinking about Haley Stevens,” he told reporters. “I’m just less interested in the politics of it all than the politics of it all.”

He urged voters to focus instead on health care, civil rights and the differences between his campaign and that of Trump-backed Rogers.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) issued a scathing statement in response to Stevens’ “last-minute political stunts.”

“Haley Stevens’ disappointing decision to support Mike Rogers, a Trump ally who would join Republican efforts to sell out working families, is a betrayal of the values ​​of the Democratic Party,” said DNC Chairman Ken Martin.

“As Democrats stand united to fight for Michigan families and oppose Trump’s agenda, we reject these efforts to sow division within our party.”

The DNC’s local branch, the Michigan Democratic Party (MDP), also had strong words for Haley’s support of Rogers.

“Haley Stevens’ decision to campaign with Rogers…shows that she has abandoned everything she cared about,” said MDP Chairman Curtis Hertel. “We reject attempts by Stevens and bad faith actors to divide our party and undermine our momentum, and we will not let these last-minute distractions deter us. »

Stevens’ decision also led to resignations within his own team. His chief of staff of eight years, Justin German, announced that he and several other staffers had resigned following the approval.

“We are shocked and heartbroken by Congresswoman Stevens’ decision to support Mike Rogers,” German said in a statement first shared by CNN.

Trump, meanwhile, celebrated his decision.

“Wow, it’s BIG! » he wrote in an article on social networks on Sunday.

At a rally in Iowa later in the day, the president said he would “love” for Stevens to join the Republican Party.

“Haley said what few people are willing to say,” Trump added. “It’s a thing called bravery.”

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, who accompanied Trump to Iowa, also paid tribute to Stevens, telling reporters he sent the congresswoman a note after her “courageous” support.

“Haley is a good person. She’s always been very thoughtful,” Johnson said, describing the Michigan Senate race as a “contrast” election. “She loves her state. She served it as best she could. She speaks the truth.”

Could Stevens’ endorsement affect Michigan’s Senate race?

El-Sayed and Rogers are competing to replace incumbent Democratic Sen. Gary Peters in a hotly contested race that could help determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.

Republicans currently control both houses of Congress, and Democrats hope to win enough seats to challenge Trump’s agenda and increase control of his administration.

Stevens defeated El-Sayed in Wayne County, which includes Detroit, and neighboring Oakland County, winning support from black and Jewish Democratic voters. Both counties are Democratic strongholds, where turnout could help determine Tuesday’s outcome.

The question now is whether Stevens’ support could convince some of his supporters to support Rogers, or discourage them from voting altogether.

Polls suggest El-Sayed has largely consolidated Democratic support, according to the Reuters news agency.

Early voting began on October 24, before the latest conflict broke out.