A rift between Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and his former primary opponent, Rep. Haley Stevens, has taken much of the focus in the final sprint of the campaign, as El-Sayed pushes to return the attention to the issues facing Michigan voters as he takes on GOP candidate Mike Rogers.
After Stevens called on El-Sayed last week to condemn an outside group’s ad linking U.S. military aid to Israel to rising grocery prices, which she characterized as antisemitic, and El-Sayed accused her of «relitigating a primary that ended three months ago,» El-Sayed faced questions Saturday about the ongoing rift. He reiterated that the ad «was not made by me,» adding that he disagrees with its contents. And on Stevens, he said, «The outcome of the primary are what they were.»
«I understand some folks are upset about that. I get it,» El-Sayed added. «But I’m here trying to beat Mike Rogers.»
Meanwhile, Rogers praised Stevens for calling on El-Sayed to denounce the ad and for expressing concerns raised by Michigan Jewish voters.
«Representative Haley Stevens is a courageous leader who deserves the respect of every Michigan voter,» Rogers said in a post on X. «She has conducted herself with nothing but class since the Democratic primary, a primary where a majority of voters did not vote for her party’s nominee.»
The latest developments come after Stevens was asked to stay away from all remaining campaign events in the final days before Tuesday’s election, CBS News previously reported. When asked whether he wanted Stevens to appear with him at a unity event Sunday alongside Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, El-Sayed said, «I would rather not distract from the key issues of this campaign.»
Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan told CNN that she talked to Stevens, saying «I am the one that said, ‘This isn’t working.'»
«There’s nothing to be gained by the two of them being in the same place for the next few days,» Dingell said. «We need to be talking about the issues, not how, you know, what’s the relationship between those two. And she’s been clear from the beginning — she’s supporting the ticket, she’s voting for him.»
