The Michigan Democratic Party has decided to definitively remove former Senate hopeful Haley Stevens, after she publicly urged people to vote for Republican Mike Rogers in the impending Tuesday electoral contest for the legislative elections. At the same time, the state party, in line with the Democratic leadership in Washington, has closed ranks around the primary winner, Abdul El Sayed, to whom they have reiterated their absolute support.
"Congresswoman Stevens is not a current member of the Michigan Democratic Party nor will she be in the future," the party president in the state, Curtis Hertel, has stated in a brief message posted on his social networks, just hours after the former candidate shook up the final stretch of the campaign by announcing her support for Rogers. Her decision comes after months of disagreements with El Sayed, which intensified until reaching a breaking point last week.
Stevens, who has had notable financial backing from the political action committee of the influential Jewish lobby AIPAC, reacted harshly against a video from El Sayed's campaign in which the rise in the cost of living in the United States was linked to Israel's military financing during the Gaza war. In response, El Sayed's team (which has long been denying accusations of antisemitism) asked the former candidate to stay away from the campaign events scheduled until election day.
The congresswoman's next step was to make a definitive turn and ask for support for Mike Rogers. "What we are as Michiganders is not hate, and that is not what we are getting from our Democratic candidate right now," Stevens said in justifying her stance.
El Sayed wins the Democratic Party's firm support
"The Michigan Democratic Party is united and fully supports Abdul El Sayed, a committed and proven fighter for Michigan's working families," the state leadership has proclaimed in a statement in which it accuses Stevens of "abandoning everything she said she cared about" by siding with Rogers, "a man who has repeatedly betrayed Michigan's working class, wants to pass a national abortion ban, and has promised to be a loyal vote for Trump's agenda."
The definitive backing has come from the federal Senate, by the hand of the Democratic minority leader, Chuck Schumer, considered the group’s 'de facto' head and one of the most influential figures in the Jewish community in the United States. Schumer has expressed firm and explicit support for the Democratic candidate for the Michigan seat, in key elections that could tip the balance of power in the Upper House.
"We Senate Democrats are united in our support for Abdul El Sayed, because we know that he will fight for the economic interests of working families in Michigan, unlike Mike Rogers, who is a puppet of Donald Trump and billionaire donors," declared the senator from New York, who described Stevens's move as a "despicable betrayal".