Haley Stevens Endorses Mike Rogers After Feud With Abdul El-Sayed

Rep. Haley Stevens lost Michigan's Democratic Senate primary to Abdul El-Sayed in August. She initially endorsed him, according to The Atlantic, but subsequently expressed doubts about his campaign.

The immediate dispute concerned an outside group's advertisement and El-Sayed's comments about Israel. CBS Top Stories reported that Stevens demanded he condemn the ad and apologize for his comments. ABCNews.com reported that Stevens described the advertisement as anti-Semitic. That characterization was hers, not an established finding about the ad.

On October 30, TMZ reported a warning from Stevens's fiancé that she was prepared to withdraw her support and skip an important campaign rally unless El-Sayed disavowed controversial advertisements.

By October 31, the dispute had become a public exchange between the former primary rivals. El-Sayed accused Stevens of being "intent on relitigating" their primary, according to CBS Top Stories.

El-Sayed's campaign then told Stevens to stay away from its events, including a planned Sunday appearance, The Hill reported on October 31. "I don't want any distractions," El-Sayed said Saturday, according to The New York Times.

On November 1, Stevens appeared with Republican Mike Rogers at a Detroit church service, according to Associated Press. She endorsed him that day, abandoning the Democratic nominee in the final stretch of the campaign, NBC News reported.

President Trump welcomed the break. On November 1, he said he would "love to have" Stevens join the Republican Party, according to The Hill.

Stevens is now backing Rogers rather than the candidate who defeated her in the Democratic primary. NPR Politics reported that she had been scheduled to attend a unity event with El-Sayed on the day she instead endorsed his Republican opponent.

The split comes in a battleground race that could determine which party controls the Senate, according to NBC News. The endorsement establishes a clear break within Michigan's Democratic ranks, but the supplied coverage does not establish how many voters will follow Stevens.

The immediate test is whether Stevens's endorsement changes votes in the final days of the election. Rogers has claimed that an internal model puts him almost seven points ahead among early votes, the New York Post reported. That is a campaign claim based on an internal model, not an election result.

Trump's invitation also leaves open whether Stevens will change parties. The coverage reports his welcome, but does not report that she has accepted it.