Haley Stevens Endorses Mike Rogers in Michigan Senate Race

Status as of 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 1. This report is based on Stevens’ video statement as quoted by NBC News, CBS News and The Associated Press, statements from both campaigns and party leaders, and official Michigan election sources. No votes have been counted.

Haley Stevens endorses Mike Rogers, the Republican nominee in Michigan’s open U.S. Senate race, in a sharp break with her party two days before Election Day. Stevens, a Democratic congresswoman who lost the August primary to Abdul El-Sayed, announced her support for Rogers on Sunday, Nov. 1, after a public dispute with El-Sayed over an outside group’s ad, according to NBC News, CBS News and the AP.

What happened

Stevens attended a Sunday service with Rogers at Perfecting Church in Detroit, the AP and USA TODAY reported, and then posted a video on X announcing the endorsement, according to The Guardian and mlive. A Rogers spokesperson confirmed the joint church appearance to NBC News.

“Hey, Michigan, as you may have seen, our Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Abdul, said that I was no longer welcome in his campaign and that I should stay away,” Stevens said in the video, as quoted by NBC News. “And he’s right, and that’s why I am endorsing Mike Rogers for the United States Senate today.” She added, “I don’t belong in Abdul’s campaign.”

Stevens also said in the video that she remains a Democrat. “I’m still a very proud Democrat,” she said, according to mlive. “I still very much believe in everything I voted for and said.”

The fallout inside her office was quick. Stevens’ longtime chief of staff is resigning over the decision, and other staff members are expected to follow, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke to NBC News and the AP. Neither outlet named a source, and LiveNewsWorld has not independently confirmed the resignations.

How the dispute escalated

Stevens had endorsed El-Sayed after the primary. Days before Sunday, she publicly reaffirmed that she would vote for him, the AP reported. She had been expected to join El-Sayed and Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina at a unity event in Detroit on Sunday, according to CBS News and the AP.

Those plans broke down after Stevens called on El-Sayed to condemn an ad from an outside group that linked U.S. aid to Israel to high grocery prices. Stevens characterized the ad as antisemitic, CBS News and NBC News reported. “Abdul promises to get money out of politics,” Stevens wrote in a Friday statement quoted by the AP. “He can begin by getting Israel out of his explanation for everything Michigan cannot afford.”

El-Sayed responded that Stevens “seems intent on relitigating a primary that ended three months ago,” according to the AP, CBS News and NBC News. He has said the ad was not made by his campaign, and on Saturday he said, “I do not agree with the contents of that ad,” the AP reported. CBS News also reported that he disagrees with its contents.

El-Sayed’s campaign then asked Stevens to stay away from its remaining events, NBC News and CBS News reported. “I would rather not distract from the key issues of this campaign,” El-Sayed said Saturday, according to CBS News. Rep. Debbie Dingell, a Michigan Democrat who helped organize the joint appearance, told the AP that she was the one who called it off “because it had become way too distracting.” Dingell gave a similar account to CNN, The Guardian reported.

Stevens’ fiance, Jason Turkish, said last week that he would vote for Rogers, the AP and CBS News reported.

Latest development

Democratic leaders moved quickly to show support for their nominee. “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 said in a statement reported by CBS News. USA TODAY also reported that Schumer decried the move and said Senate Democrats were united behind El-Sayed.

Dingell said in a statement that Michiganders “want leaders focused on making their lives more affordable,” and that Democrats must stay focused on “electing Abdul El-Sayed as Michigan’s next senator,” CBS News reported.

Rogers had praised Stevens before Sunday. “Representative Haley Stevens is a courageous leader who deserves the respect of every Michigan voter,” he said in a post on X on Friday, according to CBS News, and MS NOW reported the same remark. On Sunday, El-Sayed attended a separate church service in the Detroit area with Dingell, Clyburn and other Democrats and did not address the dispute in his remarks, the AP reported.

Who is on the ballot

The official City of Livonia sample ballots for the Nov. 3 state general election list six candidates for U.S. Senate, in this order:

• Abdul El-Sayed, Democratic
• Mike Rogers, Republican
• Lydia Christensen, Libertarian
• Tim Long, U.S. Taxpayers
• Douglas P. Marsh, Green
• Walter P. Kristy, Natural Law

Stevens is not a candidate in the general election. Our Michigan Senate race 2026 guide has more on the nominees and the state’s counting rules.

Why it matters

The seat is open because Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is retiring, the AP reported. Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate, USA TODAY reported, and Democrats need a net gain of four seats to win control, according to the AP. Republicans hope that flipping the Michigan seat would block that path, the AP reported.

The dispute also touches the coalition Democrats rely on in southeast Michigan. Stevens beat El-Sayed in Wayne County, which includes Detroit, and in neighboring Oakland County in the August primary, the AP reported. If elected, El-Sayed would be the first Muslim U.S. senator, according to the AP.

It is not clear how much the endorsement will affect the outcome. More than 2 million Michigan votes had already been cast by mail and early in-person voting before Sunday, NBC News reported. Surveys taken before Sunday do not capture any reaction to the endorsement, and our 2026 midterm election polls tracker explains how to read pre-election surveys. LiveNewsWorld does not publish predictions or win probabilities for this race.

What happens next

How to vote in Michigan

• Hours: Polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday, Nov. 3, according to the Michigan Department of State Election Day guide.
• ID: Voters who have a photo ID must show it, but photo ID is not required to vote. A voter without one can sign an affidavit and will be issued a ballot, the guide says.
• Registration: Eligible residents who are not registered at their current address have until 8 p.m. on Election Day to register at their city or township clerk’s office.
• Absentee ballots: Ballots must be received by the local clerk, including at an official drop box, by 8 p.m. on Election Day, according to the state’s absentee voting page. Registered voters can apply for an absentee ballot in person at their clerk’s office until 4 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2. Detroit voters cannot feed absentee ballots into tabulators at their polling places.

When results are expected

Most Michigan polls close at 8 p.m. ET, and some in the Upper Peninsula close at 9 p.m. ET, so the AP will not declare a statewide winner before 9 p.m. ET, according to the AP. Our guide to poll closing times on Election Day 2026 lists every state. A statewide recount is automatic in Michigan if the margin is 0.1% of the votes cast or less, the AP reported. For the national picture, see our guide to when 2026 midterm results will be known.

LiveNewsWorld will update this report if the campaigns or party leaders respond further, and will report Michigan returns as they are posted, naming the outlet behind any race call.

Related live coverage

Follow every contested seat on our US Senate elections 2026 results page, find every guide in the US Midterm Elections 2026 hub, and get the latest Washington news on US Politics Live.

Sources

• NBC News: Rep. Haley Stevens endorses GOP candidate Mike Rogers in Michigan Senate race (Nov. 1, 2026, updated 1:07 p.m. ET); CBS News: Democrat Haley Stevens endorses Michigan GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers (Nov. 1, 2026, updated 1:19 p.m. ET)
• The Associated Press: Democrat Haley Stevens endorses GOP’s Mike Rogers in Michigan Senate race (Nov. 1, 2026) and What to expect in Michigan on Election Day (Oct. 30, 2026)
• USA TODAY election live updates (Nov. 1, 2026); The Guardian (Nov. 1, 2026); mlive (Nov. 1, 2026); MS NOW (Oct. 31, 2026)
• City of Livonia (Wayne County), Mich.: Official sample ballots, Nov. 3, 2026 state general election
• Michigan Department of State: Election Day voting guide and absentee voting page. Sources last updated 1:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026.