In a display of party unity in the fiercely contested battle for a U.S. Senate seat in Michigan, former Democratic Senate candidate Haley Stevens said she plans to vote for Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed, despite losing to him in the primary and her fiancé's public back of Republican nominee Mike Rogers. Appearing on CNN with Kaitlan Collins Wednesday night, Stevens was asked about her fiancé's decision to support Rogers, the former congressman and FBI agent who emerged as the Republican nominee.
"I still very much want our Democratic nominee, his name is Abdul, to win this race, there's so much on the line.” Stevens underscored her support for Democrats and El-Sayed, her former primary rival, as he faces Rogers in a race that could help determine control of the U.S. Her fiancé, Jason Turkish, described his decision to vote for Rogers over El-Sayed as “putting country before party.” Turkish, a civil rights attorney, told The Detroit News that he had witnessed “an escalation in [El-Sayed’s] rhetoric since the primary, and it makes folks unsafe.” He added, "Every time he talks about genocide (in Gaza), Jews get death threats." When asked about Turkish's decision to support Rogers out of concerns over Israel, El-Sayed said the election was about control of the Senate and checking President Donald Trump. Newsweek reached out to the Rogers campaign for comment late Wednesday night.
Stevens also urged El-Sayed to disavow a viral grocery store ad endorsing his campaign that has faced accusations of antisemitism. El-Sayed said his campaign had nothing to do with the ad, which linked U.S. support for Israel to rising grocery prices. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas campaigned alongside Rogers at a rally in Bad Axe, Michigan, on Wednesday, urging voters to support the Republican nominee while criticizing El-Sayed.
Cruz also reacted to The Detroit News report about Turkish’s endorsement of Rogers, sharing the article on X alongside an eyes emoji. The Michigan Senate race is expected to be among the most closely watched contests of the 2026 midterm cycle. El-Sayed, a progressive who first gained statewide attention during his 2018 gubernatorial campaign, won the Democratic nomination after running on issues including healthcare, economic inequality and opposition to U.S. support for Israel's war in Gaza.
Rogers entered the general election with strong support from national Republicans and has sought to frame himself as an experienced national-security voice capable of appealing to both conservatives and swing voters. For Democrats, Stevens' endorsement of El-Sayed may be less significant for the votes it delivers than for what it symbolizes: Primary losers are often pressured to help unite their party, particularly in battleground states such as Michigan. Polling averages show a close race between El-Sayed and Rogers.
RealClearPolitics rates the Michigan U.S. Senate race as a toss-up, with its polling average showing El-Sayed leading Rogers by 2.8 percentage points, 48.8 percent to 46 percent, as of Tuesday. A CBS News/Mitchell poll conducted on October 26 and October 27 found El-Sayed ahead by 7 points, 51 percent to 44 percent, outside the poll's 3.9-point margin of error.
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