Michigan Democrats feud over Israel ad days before Senate toss-up vote

The two Michigan Democrats who were supposed to campaign together in Detroit on Sunday spent Friday trading statements instead. Rep. Haley Stevens, who lost the August Senate primary to Abdul El-Sayed, called on him to formally condemn an ad from an outside progressive group that she called antisemitic ¹.

The ad, produced by Rebellion PAC, is set in a grocery store and suggests Israel and the war in Gaza are to blame for rising prices in America ¹. El-Sayed is not affiliated with the group, and his campaign distanced itself from the ad in statements to The New York Times earlier this week, NBC News reported ¹.

Stevens said the ad tells Michigan families they cannot afford groceries because their money has to be set aside for killing Palestinians, and she tied it to comments El-Sayed has made in his own campaign ¹. She also asked him to take down one of his own ads featuring right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson ¹.

This ad tells Michigan families they cannot afford groceries because their money has to be set aside for 'killing Palestinians,' and it blames our close ally Israel for everything Michiganders cannot afford

El-Sayed, a vocal critic of Israel, shot back that Stevens "seems intent on relitigating a primary that ended three months ago" and said his campaign's focus was on affordability and health care ¹. He said that focus is why his "people-powered campaign defeated a historic $70M in outside spending from big corporations and AIPAC on behalf of Congresswoman Stevens," referring to the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group ¹.

From Channel GOPEl-Sayed dares Trump to take a lie detectorAbdul El-Sayed · 153 plays · captioned, with the source named

A unity rally now in question

The exchange comes after the former primary rivals had seemed to reconcile, agreeing to appear at a Detroit event alongside Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., on Sunday ¹. It is unclear whether the Friday statements will affect that appearance; representatives for both did not respond when asked whether the two still planned to attend ¹.

Other Michigan Democrats weighed in. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow said on CNN, "First of all, I have no idea what the hell Haley Stevens is doing," adding, "This is a moment where we have to recognize the stakes" ¹. Rep. Debbie Dingell, who said she helped broker the Sunday event with Clyburn, downplayed the conflict on NBC News' "Meet the Press NOW" ¹.

On Wednesday, Stevens said in a CNN interview that she would vote for El-Sayed while calling on him to denounce the ad ¹. That came shortly after her fiancé, Jason Turkish, told The Detroit News he was voting for Rogers ¹.

Republican nominee Mike Rogers praised Stevens late Friday, calling her a "courageous leader" who deserved "the respect of every Michigan voter" ². He said she "was absolutely right to call on Abdul El-Sayed to denounce the Rebellion PAC ad and she was right to call on him to apologize for espousing the same hateful ideology behind it" ².

Former Obama adviser David Axelrod said on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 that Stevens' remarks felt like she was "almost setting up an endorsement of Rogers" ². President Donald Trump, at a rally in Daytona Beach, Florida, said El-Sayed "doesn't like Jewish people and he doesn't like Black people" ².

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the Michigan Senate race as a toss-up ¹. RealClearPolitics' polling average showed El-Sayed leading Rogers 49.1 percent to 45.6 percent as of Thursday ². More than 1.85 million Michigan voters had cast ballots as of Friday, according to the Michigan Secretary of State ².

That matters because Michigan is one of the Senate seats Democrats need to hold as they try to take back Congress on Tuesday, and the fight is unfolding in public view rather than behind closed doors ¹. The pattern is a primary that ended in August still shaping a general election with days to go.

The Record

1. Aug 1, 2026El-Sayed defeated Stevens in the Democratic Senate primary ¹.
2. Oct 28, 2026Stevens said in a CNN interview she would vote for El-Sayed while calling on him to denounce the Rebellion PAC ad ¹.
3. Oct 30, 2026Stevens and El-Sayed traded critical statements over the Israel ad ¹.
4. Oct 31, 2026Rogers praised Stevens as a 'courageous leader' in a post on X ².

Sources

1. NBC News, “Haley Stevens and Abdul El-Sayed clash over Israel ad ahead of planned rally together” (2026-10-31). nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/haley-stevens-abdul-el-sa
2. Newsweek, “Haley Stevens Could Be Paving Way for Rogers Endorsement: Ex-Obama Adviser” (2026-10-31). newsweek.com/haley-stevens-could-be-paving-way-for-rogers-en

Found an error? Tell the newsroom. Corrections are noted at the top of the story.