Democratic Representative Haley Stevens has endorsed Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan’s Senate race, breaking with her party’s candidate, Abdul El-Sayed, just days before the midterm election. The decision has caused turmoil within her team and drawn strong criticism from Michigan Democrats.

Stevens’ chief of staff, Justin German, resigned along with several other members of her team, saying he was deeply saddened by the endorsement. Her communications director, Logan Basch, also left his position.

Stevens announced her support for Rogers after attending a service at Perfecting Church in Detroit, where she appeared alongside the Republican candidate. She said she would vote for Rogers because the country should come first and because she opposed what she described as hatred. She also said that most of her other votes would go to Democratic candidates.

The endorsement came after Stevens narrowly lost the Democratic primary to El-Sayed in August. The two have clashed over several issues, including US policy toward Israel. Stevens also criticized an advertisement from an independent left-wing group that linked US aid to Israel with high food prices. El-Sayed said his campaign had not produced the advertisement and that he did not agree with its content.

Virgie Rollins, who leads the Michigan Democratic Party’s Black caucus, accused Stevens of using Black Michigan residents for a political maneuver after the endorsement was announced at a predominantly Black church. Michigan Democratic Party chairman Curtis Hertel said she had abandoned everything she claimed to stand for.

Stevens said her decision was not anti-Muslim. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer continued to back El-Sayed and condemned what he called racist, Islamophobic and false attacks. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, praised Stevens on Truth Social, describing her as a respected Democrat and calling her decision an act of courage.

The electoral impact of the endorsement remains uncertain. A CNN poll published Thursday placed El-Sayed ahead of Rogers, with 49% of voting intentions compared with 42% for the Republican. The poll also found that El-Sayed had the support of 95% of likely Democratic voters.

The Michigan dispute comes as more than 54.7 million people have already voted in the 2026 midterms, according to figures from The Associated Press and CNN. The total includes early in-person and mail-in voting, with early participation exceeding the level recorded in the previous midterm election in several states with closely contested Senate races.

Sources: Le Monde International.