El-Sayed asks Stevens to stay away as Kansas poll puts Democrat ahead

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed has asked his Democratic primary rival, Rep. Haley Stevens, to stay away from all remaining campaign events before Tuesday's election, according to two sources familiar with the matter ¹. The pair clashed Friday ahead of what had been a planned Sunday campaign event where they were expected to make a rare appearance together ¹. Politico was first to report El-Sayed had asked Stevens to stay away ¹.

The public rift comes days before one of the country's most hotly contested Senate races, as Republican nominee Mike Rogers seeks to peel off centrist Democratic voters ¹. El-Sayed and the more moderate Stevens offered starkly differing visions for the party during the primary, and although Stevens endorsed El-Sayed after he won the nomination, the two largely haven't campaigned alongside each other ¹.

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In a statement Friday evening, El-Sayed said Stevens "seems intent on relitigating a primary that ended three months ago" ¹. The dig came hours after Stevens demanded that El-Sayed, a vehement critic of U.S. aid to Israel, apologize for suggesting during the campaign that "Israel is the reason Michigan cannot afford schools, health care, and child care" ¹.

seems intent on relitigating a primary that ended three months ago

Stevens also urged El-Sayed to condemn an ad from an outside PAC that she said was antisemitic ¹. The video ad features a couple in a grocery store talking about needing to put a carton of eggs back on the shelf because "we have to set that $7 aside for killing Palestinians" ¹. El-Sayed's campaign said earlier this week it was not affiliated "in any way" with the ad, which was created by the political action committee Rebellion PAC ¹.

From Channel GOPEl-Sayed's answer to attacks on his nameAbdul El-Sayed · 181 plays · captioned, with the source named

In her Friday statement, Stevens also called on El-Sayed to take down his own ad featuring the far-right podcaster and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson ¹. Earlier this week, Stevens' fiancé, Jason Turkish, told The Detroit News he would vote for Rogers; later that day, Stevens said in a CNN interview that she would vote for El-Sayed, saying, "We're a household divided," but she called on his campaign "to shut out the hate and to call it out" ¹. This Sunday's "60 Minutes" will feature Ross Douthat's exclusive interviews with El-Sayed and Rogers ¹.

Kansas: a final poll and a shift

In Kansas, the final Emerson College poll of the year found 49% of voters backing Democrat Adam Hamilton and 45% favoring incumbent Republican Sen. Roger Marshall, with Libertarian David Graham at 3% and 3% undecided ². The poll has a credibility interval, similar to a margin of error, of 3.5% ². Hamilton rose four points from 45%, while Marshall gained two, from 43% ².

"Independents break for Hamilton, 59% to 25%," Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling, said in a news release, a 17-point increase among the group since last month ². Hamilton is a senior pastor at Church of the Resurrection megachurch in the Kansas City suburb of Leawood ². Marshall was elected in 2020 ².

Richard Witmer, a political science professor at Creighton University in Omaha, said he would still classify the race as a toss-up ². "There's just so much momentum in his direction right now," Witmer said ². With a focus on affordability, Hamilton has spoken out against planned Medicare cuts that will fall hard on rural Kansans; Marshall, an OB-GYN, has reportedly sued patients who couldn't pay their bills, and on Thursday a class-action by patients accused him of charging illegal interest rates on medical bills ².

Trump has a 51% disapproval rating in Kansas, with voters citing the economy as a top issue, and only 45% approve of his performance ². Diesel has nearly doubled in price over the past year, from $3.46 a gallon to $6.04, and fertilizer supplies are being affected by the Iran War ². Trump is scheduled to hold a rally Sunday in Salina, Kansas, and appear that day in Dubuque, Iowa ².

That matters because Senate control runs through a handful of close states, and the two parties' closing arguments here touch directly on Medicare and household costs. The pattern is a Democratic closing week split between unity messages in some states and open friction in Michigan.

The Record

1. Oct 30, 2026Emerson's final Kansas poll has Hamilton at 49% and Marshall at 45%, with a 3.5% credibility interval ².
2. Oct 31, 2026Stevens' fiancé, Jason Turkish, told The Detroit News he would vote for Rogers; Stevens said on CNN she would vote for El-Sayed ¹.
3. Oct 31, 2026El-Sayed asked Stevens to stay away from remaining campaign events, according to two sources ¹.

Sources

1. CBS News, “El-Sayed and Stevens feud ahead of key Michigan Senate race” (2026-10-31). cbsnews.com/news/abdul-el-sayed-haley-stevens-feud-michigan-
2. Courthouse News, “Poll shows Democrat ahead in Kansas US Senate race” (2026-10-30). courthousenews.com/poll-shows-democrat-ahead-in-kansas-u-s-s

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