Michigan Senate Race Ends in Disarray

Jason Turkish, the fiancé of former Michigan Representative Haley Stevens, told The Detroit News on Wednesday that he will vote for Republican challenger Mike Rogers. The comment arrived less than one week before Election Day and marked the latest public sign of tension within the Democratic Party.

Stevens lost the Democratic primary to Abdul El-Sayed in a contest that divided local party leaders. Although she stated on CNN later that day that she would still support El-Sayed, she urged his campaign to address lingering dissatisfaction among traditional voters. "Make people who are in my coalition, right, make them feel comfortable about coming to the polls," she said.

The race involves two candidates with distinct strategies for the final stretch. El-Sayed has focused on expanding his base by targeting college students and rural residents. Rogers has remained closely aligned with President Donald Trump, appearing with him at a rally in Port Huron on Sunday.

Port Huron sits across the river from Canada, a trading partner that Trump has targeted with tariffs. Rogers credited Trump with bringing manufacturing jobs back to the state during that event. The president has also attacked El-Sayed personally, calling him a "jihadist" and saying on Sunday that the Democrat was "on the side of terrorists."

Jewish voters represent a key constituency in this election. Concerns have grown over El-Sayed’s past remarks and his association with streamer Hasan Piker. Turkish and other community members have argued that El-Sayed has not done enough to address these worries.

A recent advertisement by Rebellion PAC, an independent left-wing group, intensified the debate. The ad linked U.S. support for Israel to high grocery prices. El-Sayed said the ad had "nothing to do with our campaign." He added, "It's certainly not what I want to be talking about right now."

Stevens and other Democrats pushed El-Sayed to more strongly denounce the advertisement's content. Rabbi Aaron Starr of Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield criticized both the Rebellion PAC ad and a separate El-Sayed campaign ad featuring former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Carlson has faced accusations of antisemitism that he denies.

"We are one week away from the election, and it feels like the temperature has turned way up," Starr said. "Instead of things getting better over the last seven weeks, they've actually gotten worse."

Rogers sought to capitalize on these divisions. He appeared Wednesday in Birmingham, Michigan, with Texas Senator Ted Cruz at an event hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition. Cruz described antisemitism as a poison and accused Democrats of being taken over by self-proclaimed communists and Islamists.

Both campaigns are now focusing on Black voters in Wayne County, where Stevens defeated El-Sayed in the primary. El-Sayed plans to campaign Sunday in the Detroit area with South Carolina Representative James Clyburn. Rogers has visited a reading remediation program in a Detroit high school and discussed housing costs in Pontiac. His wife recently handed out $10 gift cards at a gas station, a gesture that drew criticism from local retirees.

Ruby Farmer, a 68-year-old Detroit retiree, criticized the gift card distribution but said she voted for El-Sayed three weeks ago. She noted that her special-needs son depends on Medicaid, a program she says has faced cuts and benefit holds in Michigan.

El-Sayed has held events in heavily Republican areas, including Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. His team released an ad featuring clips of conservative figures praising him. The final push for the seat will determine whether voter frustration with Trump outweighs the internal Democratic divisions that have defined the past year.