Two days before Michigan voters choose a Senate seat that may tip control of Congress, a Democratic congresswoman who lost her party's primary has crossed over to endorse the Republican opponent, a move that tests how far loyalty to a party can bend under the pressure of personal grievance. The rupture began with a dispute over an outside group's advertisement tying the cost of living to American support for Israel, and it has left Democrats reckoning with what it means when one of their own walks toward the other side. Whether her choice reads as principle or as wounded pride may depend on th
Democrats Erupt as Haley Stevens Endorses Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan Senate Race
"I'm just casting my one vote this way."
Mark
Why does one endorsement two days out matter so much?
Mimi
Because of who gave it. Stevens is a sitting Democratic House member who lost the primary to El-Sayed by a narrow margin, and she backed the Republican in a race that could decide Senate control.
Mark
What actually set it off?
Mimi
An outside group's ad blamed the cost of living on US support for Israel. She said she'd appear with El-Sayed if he denounced it. His campaign disinvited her, and she endorsed Rogers.
Luke
Careful, though. That's the sequence of events, not a confirmed motive. Cooper asked directly whether the disinvitation triggered it, and she let the silence air without answering.
Mark
And the party response?
Mimi
Schumer, Pelosi, Hertel and Dingell all condemned it. There are calls to expel her from the caucus, and several staff members resigned.
Luke
Calls for expulsion aren't expulsion. The source doesn't say any formal action has happened.
Mark
El-Sayed's campaign says it raised $2.4m on Sunday.
Luke
That figure comes from the campaign itself, and it's the campaign's own claim that 26,000 donors were first-timers. It's not independently verified here, and nothing links it causally to the rupture beyond timing.
Mimi
Stevens also says she's heard from many Democrats who agree with her. That's her account, and nobody else has substantiated it.
Luke
Right. And whether any of this moves votes on Tuesday is simply unknown.
Le Pouls
- A sitting Democratic congresswoman has endorsed the Republican in a Senate race just two days before the vote, shocking her own party.
- Party leaders including Schumer and Pelosi have condemned the move, and calls for her expulsion from the House caucus are growing.
- Congressional staff are resigning in protest while Stevens offers only a vague 'one vote' explanation and sidesteps questions on CNN.
- Trump is openly courting her to switch parties, while El-Sayed's campaign has surged to a record $2.4m in final-day donations.
- The race that could decide Senate control now turns on whether Democrats can hold together before Tuesday's ballot.
Two days before Michigan voters choose a Senate seat that may tip control of Congress, a Democratic congresswoman who lost her party's primary has crossed over to endorse the Republican opponent, a move that tests how far loyalty to a party can bend under the pressure of personal grievance. The rupture began with a dispute over an outside group's advertisement tying the cost of living to American support for Israel, and it has left Democrats reckoning with what it means when one of their own walks toward the other side. Whether her choice reads as principle or as wounded pride may depend on the outcome of a race that is now as much about the party's unity as about the seat itself.
On Sunday, two days before the midterms, Representative Haley Stevens of Michigan released a video endorsing Mike Rogers, the Republican seeking the state's open Senate seat. Stevens is a Democrat, and the man she was endorsing against, Abdul El-Sayed, had narrowly beaten her in the primary. The break came after a feud over an outside group's ad that blamed the high cost of living on US support for Israel. Stevens had offered to appear at an El-Sayed event if he denounced the ad; his campaign disinvited her instead, and within hours she had backed his opponent.
The reaction was swift and bruising. Chuck Schumer called the move a despicable betrayal, Nancy Pelosi accused her of dangerously betraying Michigan families, and Michigan Democratic chair Curtis Hertel said she was not a member of the party and would not be in the future. Debbie Dingell dismissed it as a bid for attention. Stevens now faces calls for expulsion from the House Democratic caucus, and several of her staff have resigned.
On CNN, Stevens struggled to explain herself. "I'm just casting my one vote this way," she said, and when asked whether the disinvitation had triggered her decision, she gave no answer, leaving several silent seconds on air. She later compared herself to John Fetterman, the former progressive who often breaks with his party on Israel. Trump praised her as a highly respected Democrat and said he would love her to join the Republicans. Stevens dryly answered that she had impeached him twice.
Some old allies are stunned. Charlotte Clymer, a longtime friend, said the endorsement was like endorsing Trump, and her texts to Stevens have gone unanswered. Meanwhile, El-Sayed's campaign says the rupture has energized it, reporting more than $2.4m raised on Sunday from over 26,000 first-time donors. Michigan votes on Tuesday.
On Sunday, two days before the midterm elections, Representative Haley Stevens of Michigan released a video endorsing Mike Rogers, the Republican running for the state's open Senate seat. She is a Democrat. The man Rogers is running against, Abdul El-Sayed, beat her narrowly in the Democratic primary.
The break followed a feud between Stevens and El-Sayed's campaign over an advertisement from an outside group, which blamed the high cost of living on US support for Israel. Stevens had said she would appear at a campaign event if El-Sayed denounced the ad. His campaign disinvited her instead. Within hours she had endorsed his opponent.
The reaction from her party was immediate. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer called the endorsement "a despicable betrayal" and said Senate Democrats were united behind El-Sayed, describing Rogers as a tool of Donald Trump and billionaire donors. Former House speaker Nancy Pelosi said Stevens had chosen to "dangerously betray Michigan families' healthcare, freedoms and future." New York mayor Zohran Mamdani said she had betrayed working-class voters by endorsing the very Republican she once said she wanted to run against.
Closer to home, Curtis Hertel, chair of the Michigan Democratic party, said Stevens was not a member of the party "nor will she be in the future." Asked in a video why he thought she had done it, he cited sour grapes over the primary but said there was no reasonable explanation, calling the move the antithesis of what she had fought for in her career. Debbie Dingell, a veteran Michigan House Democrat, dismissed the endorsement as a distraction from the cost-of-living concerns voters actually talk about, and accused Stevens of seeking attention. Stevens now faces calls to be expelled from the House Democratic caucus, and several members of her congressional staff have resigned in protest.
On CNN Sunday evening, Stevens declined to clearly explain her reasoning to Anderson Cooper. "I'm just casting my one vote this way," she said, while insisting she still wanted Democrats to win the majority. She said she was not trying to upset anyone and claimed to be hearing from many Democrats who shared her discomfort with the campaign. When Cooper asked whether being disinvited from the El-Sayed event had triggered the endorsement, she did not answer, and several seconds of silence aired.
On Monday she compared herself to Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman, a one-time progressive who now often breaks with his party, particularly on Israel. Speaking with conservative commentator Scott Jennings, she said Fetterman's name is a lightning rod and that people say the same about him.
Trump embraced the move. On Truth Social he called her a "highly respected Democrat," and at a rally in Dubuque, Iowa, on Sunday he said he would love for her to join the Republican party and that it could happen. Asked about the praise, Stevens told CNN, "Well, I impeached him twice." Rogers, speaking to Fox News Monday, said it was "nothing but courageous."
Charlotte Clymer, a blogger and activist who supports Democrats and says she has counted Stevens a friend for years, told the Guardian the endorsement was "like endorsing Donald Trump." She described Stevens as a lawmaker of "strident integrity" on LGBTQ+ rights, unions and abortion access. On Saturday, Clymer said, Stevens texted that she still backed the Democratic nominee. Clymer texted again after the Sunday video and has not heard back.
El-Sayed's campaign says the rupture has helped it. It reported raising more than $2.4m on Sunday, a record for the final days of a race that could decide control of the Senate, with more than 26,000 first-time donors. On MS Now, El-Sayed said the divide in politics is between people who are locked out and those locking them out. Michigan votes on Tuesday.
Citations marquantes
A despicable betrayal.— Chuck Schumer, Senate minority leader
I'm just casting my one vote this way.— Haley Stevens, to CNN's Anderson Cooper
Envie de l'histoire complète ?
Lire l'original sur The Guardian ↗
Politics & Governance