Democrats Turn on Haley Stevens After Mike Rogers Endorsement

Democratic Representative Haley Stevens is facing fierce backlash from senior party figures and members of her own staff after endorsing Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan’s closely watched Senate race on Sunday. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the endorsement a “despicable betrayal,” while Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel Jr. declared that Stevens was no longer a member of the state party.

Many members of her congressional staff, including her longtime chief of staff, also resigned. The reaction followed Stevens’ appearance alongside Rogers at a Detroit church two days before Election Day. Stevens narrowly lost the August Democratic primary to Abdul El-Sayed and initially endorsed him, but their relationship deteriorated during the closing days of the general-election campaign.

Stevens said Sunday that El-Sayed had made clear she was no longer welcome in his campaign. “And he’s right,” Stevens said in a video announcing her decision. “And that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today.”

Chuck Schumer Calls Haley Stevens’ Endorsement a ‘Despicable Betrayal’ Schumer, who backed Stevens during the Democratic primary, sharply condemned her decision while reaffirming his support for El-Sayed. “This is a despicable betrayal from Rep. Stevens,” he wrote on X.

“Senate Democrats are united in our support for Abdul El-Sayed, because we know he will fight for the economic interests of working families in Michigan, unlike Mike Rogers, who is a tool of Donald Trump and billionaire donors.” Schumer endorsed El-Sayed after he defeated Stevens in the primary, despite policy differences between the two men, including on Israel. Senate Majority PAC, a super PAC aligned with Schumer, has committed or spent more than $43 million on ads in the Michigan race since Labor Day, according to AdImpact data cited by the Washington Post.

Arizona Senator Mark Kelly also rallied behind El-Sayed following Stevens’ endorsement. “There’s too much at stake this election,” Kelly wrote on X. “We’re united around the same mission: putting a check on Trump, defeating his enablers like Mike Rogers, and retaking the Senate so we can deliver for working families.”

Kelly added that he was confident Michigan voters would send El-Sayed to the Senate. The Michigan contest could play a decisive role in determining control of the Senate. Republicans currently hold a 53-47 majority, and Democrats need to defend the Michigan seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Senator Gary Peters while making gains elsewhere.

Michigan Democrats Say Stevens Abandoned the Party Hertel issued one of the strongest rebukes of Stevens, saying the Michigan Democratic Party remained “united and fully” behind El-Sayed. “Congresswoman Stevens is not a current member of the Michigan Democratic Party, nor will she be in the future,” Hertel wrote on X. Hertel said Stevens had “abandoned everything she claims to care about” with an “eleventh-hour” endorsement.

“Mike Rogers is Donald Trump’s hand-picked candidate for Senate, a rubber stamp for Trump’s toxic agenda, and a corrupt politician looking out only for himself,” Hertel said in a separate statement. Hertel later sought to turn the backlash into a mobilizing message, saying a record number of volunteers had shown up to knock on doors for Democrats across Michigan. “We cannot let this betrayal win.

Let’s go win!” he wrote. In another post, Hertel said of Stevens’ decision: “This is NOT ‘the Michigan way!’”

Democratic Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin also criticized Stevens, saying she had avoided commenting until now because voters were more concerned about the cost of living than “daily political drama” but that “there is simply too much at stake.” “So anyone who makes an election this important about themselves, and not Michiganders and our democracy, should think hard about whether they are serving the greater good,” Slotkin wrote. She added that Tuesday’s election was “bigger than any one person” and ended with an endorsement of El-Sayed: “Michigan elects fighters, and we will elect Abdul El-Sayed on November 3.”

Peters said he and his wife, Colleen, were “extremely disappointed” by Stevens’ decision, arguing that a Democratic Senate majority was needed to check President Donald Trump and “stop the economic pain crushing Michiganders.” “I endorsed Abdul, I’ve campaigned with Abdul and tomorrow, we will cast our ballot for Abdul and every Democrat on the ballot,” Peters said. Haley Stevens Staff Resign Over Mike Rogers Endorsement The backlash also reached Stevens’ congressional office, where her longtime chief of staff, Justin German, said he and many members of her team had resigned over her decision.

“As Haley Stevens’ Chief of Staff for eight years, I speak on behalf of our team in wholeheartedly supporting Abdul El-Sayed for Senate,” German said in a statement. “This election is too important to sow division or stand on the sidelines. We are shocked and heartbroken by Congresswoman Stevens’ decision to support Mike Rogers.”

German said staff members who are Michigan voters would continue supporting Democrats up and down the ballot and working to elect Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. “As of this morning, many members of our team have resigned, including myself,” German said. “We encourage everyone to exercise their civic duty, vote for Abdul and Democrats up and down the ballot, and stand up for the America we all believe in.”

Stevens defended the endorsement as a personal choice. “It’s my personal and private decision. I still love the party,” she told reporters on Sunday.

“I’ve done a ton for the party. I’ve voted for the party over and over and over again. I’m going to continue to do that as I fill out my term.”

Democrats Accuse Stevens of Betraying Michigan Voters Former Democratic Representative Susan Wild, a longtime friend and former congressional colleague of Stevens, also delivered a deeply personal rebuke, calling the Rogers endorsement “appalling.” Wild said she and Stevens entered Congress together in 2018 and developed a close friendship. She said she had previously refrained from publicly challenging Stevens over disagreements involving Israel and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC.

“Today, that changes,” Wild wrote on X. “I’m shocked by Haley’s endorsement. I’m terribly sad and disappointed.”

Wild added that she would be furious if Democrats lost the Michigan Senate race. Wild accused Stevens of betraying Democrats who had supported her over the years and predicted consequences extending beyond electoral politics. “The fallout for Haley won’t just be in Dem politics; she will be a pariah among her friends in the Democratic caucus in Congress,” Wild wrote.

“Only she will be able to decide whether it was worth it.” Virgie Rollins, chair of the Democratic National Committee’s Black Caucus, issued another sharp rebuke, saying Michigan Democrats remained firmly behind El-Sayed. “We are dismayed that Congresswoman Haley Stevens has revealed herself to be a sellout who used Black Michiganders for a political stunt,” Rollins said in a statement shared by the Michigan Democratic Party.

“Congresswoman Stevens has lost her way, and Michiganders know that Mike Rogers is a shill for Trump and has failed Michigan.” Rollins added: “We are ready to elect Abdul on Tuesday.” Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Kirsten Gillibrand also reaffirmed the party’s support for El-Sayed.

“The stakes of this election could not be higher: Mike Rogers is a rubber stamp for Donald Trump, and together they plan to continue sowing chaos and making life unaffordable for families while prioritizing their billionaire donors at the expense of Michigan families,” Gillibrand said. Stevens also encountered anger at her appearance with Rogers. Video posted online by independent journalist Aaron Rupar captured someone shouting, “Haley Stevens is a traitor,” during her appearance with Rogers.

Donald Trump Invites Haley Stevens to Join Republican Party Trump praised Stevens during a Sunday rally in Dubuque, Iowa, describing her decision as “very brave” and publicly inviting her to become a Republican. “I don’t know Haley, I’ve never met Haley, but Haley said what few people are willing to say,” Trump said. “I’d love her to join the Republican Party.

Actually, I think that could happen. Maybe.” “But she showed great and almost unprecedented loyalty to the great people of Michigan,” he added.

Stevens has insisted that her support for Rogers does not mean she is leaving the Democratic Party. She told reporters that about “90 percent” of her ballot would consist of votes for Democrats but that her Senate vote would go to Rogers. Rogers also said Stevens remained a Democrat and characterized the endorsement as an act of opposition to hate rather than a partisan realignment.

Why Haley Stevens Endorsed Mike Rogers The endorsement followed days of escalating tensions between Stevens and El-Sayed over Israel, antisemitism and a digital advertisement from Rebellion PAC, an outside group supporting El-Sayed. The advertisement linked the high cost of groceries to U.S.

military assistance to Israel in its war in Gaza and showed a couple grocery shopping and talking about putting back a carton of eggs because “we have to set that $7 aside for killing Palestinians.” The Anti-Defamation League called the ad a “case study in antisemitism.” El-Sayed did not produce or approve the advertisement and has distanced himself from its contents.

He has rejected accusations that his criticism of Israel is antisemitic, saying his “commitment to Jewish safety is the same as my commitment to the safety of my own kids.” Stevens demanded that El-Sayed more forcefully condemn the ad and criticized his broader campaign messaging. “Abdul promises to get money out of politics,” she said Friday.

“He can begin by getting Israel out of his explanation for everything Michigan cannot afford.” The dispute escalated further when Stevens’ fiancé, Jason Turkish, announced that he would vote for Rogers, citing concerns about El-Sayed’s rhetoric and foreign policy positions. El-Sayed accused Stevens of “relitigating a primary that ended three months ago.”

Stevens was initially scheduled to appear with El-Sayed and Democratic Representative Jim Clyburn at a Sunday campaign event. Democratic Representative Debbie Dingell told the Associated Press that she asked Stevens not to attend because the dispute had become “way too distracting.” Hours later, Stevens appeared with Rogers at Perfecting Church in Detroit and announced her endorsement.

Abdul El-Sayed Responds to Haley Stevens Endorsement El-Sayed sought to minimize the significance of Stevens’ decision and said he remained focused on Michigan voters. “At the end of the day, I actually don’t think about Haley Stevens,” he told reporters Sunday. “I’m just less interested in the politics of it all than I am in the policy of it all.”

El-Sayed said voters who support abortion rights, expanded healthcare, infrastructure investment, public education and organized labor should back him. “The principles that we believe in as Democrats are really quite clear,” he said. “I stand for all of them.”

Stevens’ endorsement gives Rogers the support of a sitting Democratic member of Congress at the end of an already close and bitterly contested race. It also leaves Democrats grappling with a public intraparty rupture less than 48 hours before voters choose Peters’ successor. Newsweek reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story.

Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Anthony Murray and Steve Mollman.