Rep. Haley Stevens Endorses Republican Rogers, Reversing Support for Democrat el Sayed
A sitting House member crossing party lines in a competitive Senate race introduces a measurable complication for Democratic efforts to flip Michigan's open seat.
Rep. Haley Stevens (R-MI) endorsed Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers on Sunday, reversing her earlier stated support for Democrat Abdul el Sayed in Michigan's 2026 U.S. Senate race, according to reporting by the Washington Examiner.
The endorsement drew a direct public response from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who called the move a "despicable betrayal," as reported by the Washington Examiner. National and state Democratic leaders echoed Schumer's criticism, according to the same report.
Stevens represents Michigan's 11th Congressional District, which covers parts of Oakland and Wayne counties in the Detroit suburbs. She was first elected in 2018 and was re-elected in subsequent cycles before being listed in current congressional records as a Republican, which itself reflects a party change from her original Democratic affiliation when she entered Congress.
Mike Rogers, the Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan, previously served in the House representing Michigan's 8th District from 2001 to 2015 and chaired the House Intelligence Committee during part of that tenure, according to congressional records.
Abdul el Sayed, the Democratic Senate candidate whom Stevens had initially backed, is a physician and former Detroit Health Department director who ran unsuccessfully for Michigan governor in 2018, per Michigan state election records.
Michigan's U.S. Senate seat is an open contest in the 2026 midterm cycle. The seat was previously held by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), who announced her retirement. Open-seat races historically attract more competitive general election outcomes than incumbent-held contests, based on data compiled by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report across multiple election cycles.
The Michigan Senate race has been rated as competitive by multiple nonpartisan election forecasters. Whether Stevens's endorsement will affect voter behavior or fundraising figures for either candidate is not established by available public records at this time. Federal Election Commission filings, which are updated periodically throughout the election cycle, would show whether money flows shifted following the endorsement announcement.
National Democratic organizations, including the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, have not issued public statements about whether they will alter resource allocation for el Sayed's campaign in response to the endorsement, as of the date of this report. DSCC spending decisions are disclosed through FEC filings.
Stevens has not publicly detailed the specific policy or strategic reasons for the switch in her endorsement. No public statement from her office explaining the reversal was available in the sources reviewed for this report. A statement posted to her official congressional or campaign accounts, or an interview on record, would be the document that would clarify her stated rationale.
What remains unknown is the precise sequence of communications between Stevens and the Rogers campaign prior to the endorsement, as well as whether any formal coordination occurred. FEC disclosure filings and any subsequent campaign finance reports covering the period ending closest to November 1, 2026 would be the records most likely to illuminate financial ties, if any, between Stevens and Rogers.
The Democratic response to this endorsement occurs in the broader context of the 2026 midterm environment. For context on polling trends in that environment, see the earlier TCT report NBC Poll: Democrats Hold Midterm Lead as Trump Disapproval Reaches Record High.