Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens responded in a lengthy statement on Monday, responding to her party’s attacks after she crossed party lines to endorse Republican Mike Rogers for US Senate in Michigan over radical Islamic Democrat Abdul El-Sayed.
Stevens was immediately exiled from the Democratic Party on Sunday after she endorsed Rogers.
On Sunday morning, Stevens joined Rogers at a black church in Detroit after El-Sayed disinvited Haley Stevens from his campaign event with Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) for criticizing his stance on Israel.
Stevens’ fiancé, Jason Turkish, previously withdrew his support from El-Sayed and told TMZ that Stevens would too if he did not disavow pro-El-Sayed ads blaming Israel for high US grocery prices and featuring Tucker Carlson.
Stevens went on to endorse Mike Rogers.
“I don’t belong in Abdul’s campaign. I do not stand with Hasan Piker, who gets trafficked on our college campuses. A dear friend of mine earlier today was saying that education is on the ballot, and she’s absolutely right. And what our students see, what our children see, and who we are as Michiganders is not hate, and is not what we are getting out from our Democratic nominee right now,” she said in a video statement after joining Rogers at church on Sunday.
“I am just one person. I love this state, as some of you know. I’ve, you know, run a campaign saying that it was a love letter to Michigan, and I’m here to declare who we are as Michiganders. This is Phil Hart’s seat for the US Senate. This is the conscience of the Senate right now and our Michigan moment. And I’m just letting you know where I am. I’m still a very proud Democrat. I still very much believe in everything I voted for and said, and I’ve worked really hard, and will continue to do so in all the ways life’s opportunities afford. Godspeed, and love you all so much.”
WATCH:
Top Democrats then went after her, and the Michigan Democratic Party chairman even kicked her out of the party, writing, “Congresswoman Stevens is not a current member of the Michigan Democratic Party, nor will she be in the future.”
Even Jewish Democrat Senate Leader Chuck Schumer slammed Stevens, calling her endorsement of Mike Rogers a “despicable betrayal.”
In an 887-word statement, Stevens responded, slamming her Party for leaving her”shut out” and declaring that “Abdul El-Sayed is not fit to serve in the United States Senate.”
“Instead of asking why a lifelong Democrat reached this point, some leaders rushed to condemn me, question my motives, and push me out,” she said. “That response reveals something deeply troubling about what is missing in today’s Democratic Party.”
Full statement below:
My decision to withdraw my endorsement of Abdul El-Sayed and support Mike Rogers has angered many Democrats. I understand why. But it was not impulsive, and it was not made for me by anyone else. It was a decision of conscience.
I am a proud Democrat and believe in a woman’s right to choose, in organized labor, in opportunity for working families, and in making government work for ordinary people. None of that has changed. I believe that no one making under $70,000 should pay any Federal Income Tax. We should have fixed rate utility bills. And every person in this country gets healthcare.
After losing the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, I did what I believed was right. Despite deep disappointment – mine and that of the thousands of people who worked so hard for our campaign – I endorsed Abdul. I put the party first and hoped we could move forward together.
Instead, I was shut out. The endorsement was welcomed; the people behind it seemed to be forgotten. There was little effort to listen to the voters who supported me or bridge the real disagreements our primary had exposed.
I was prepared to accept that. I had work to do serving Michigan, and I didn’t need a role in anyone else’s campaign.
Then came the ads.
One, from a group supporting Abdul, tied the cost of groceries to America’s support for Israel. Another, from Abdul’s own campaign, featured Tucker Carlson, whose racist and anti-Black rhetoric has no place in a Democratic campaign. I heard directly from Black voters, Jewish voters, and others about how deeply these messages hurt. They deserved to be heard, not dismissed.
Reasonable people can disagree about Israel, Gaza, and American foreign policy. But blaming Israel for the price of eggs and elevating Tucker Carlson are not the way to build trust or bring people together.
Abdul chose to campaign alongside Hasan Piker, whose rhetoric about Jewish Americans has been deeply disturbing. He took Piker to college campuses to tell our youth that Iran is not our enemy. Just days ago, Piker compared efforts to win over Jewish voters in West Bloomfield to canvassing a KKK neighborhood. Abdul condemned those remarks, but his decision to embrace Piker in the first place raised serious questions about his judgment and his ability to bring people together.I asked Abdul to reject that rhetoric clearly. I wasn’t asking him to change his platform. I was offering him an opportunity to reassure people, reject division, and demonstrate the leadership required of a United States Senator.
He ultimately said he disagreed with the outside ad. I welcomed that. But by then, I had also been told I was no longer welcome at his campaign events.
That experience raised a bigger question. If a candidate cannot make room for people who supported his primary opponent, how will he represent an entire state filled with people who disagree with him?
Some critics have also dragged my fiancé into this, suggesting he or others must have made my decision for me.Think about what that says. A woman can serve in Congress, run statewide, and fight for her convictions, and still be told that when she makes a choice people dislike, someone else must be pulling the strings.
That is sexism dressed up as political analysis. My fiancé has his own views. I have mine. I made this decision, and I am proud of it. Do not question my independence simply because you disagree with my conclusion.
Endorsing a Republican is no small thing. Mike Rogers and I disagree on many things. But Michigan has to elect a senator and there is no neutral choice that absolves me of responsibility. Once I concluded that Abdul El-Sayed is not fit to serve in the United States Senate, I had to confront who should.
I chose Mike Rogers, with the hope that he can serve in the tradition of John McCain: a senator willing to put country before party and stand up to his own side when conscience requires it.
What has troubled me almost as much as this experience is my party’s reaction.
Instead of asking why a lifelong Democrat reached this point, some leaders rushed to condemn me, question my motives, and push me out.
That response reveals something deeply troubling about what is missing in today’s Democratic Party.
We cannot preach inclusion while punishing dissent. We cannot promise to heal a divided country if we cannot tolerate disagreement among ourselves. And we cannot build a lasting majority by making Americans feel their concerns are unwelcome.
Loyalty to a party should never require abandoning your values or judgment.
I respect Democrats who disagree with my decision and ask for the same respect in return.
I still believe in the promise of the Democratic Party. But fulfilling that promise will require something more than loyalty tests and demands for blind obedience.
It will require true leadership. Leaders who listen, even when it is uncomfortable. Leaders who stand against hatred without calculating the political cost. Leaders who understand that bringing people together is more important than forcing them into line.
There is healing to be done in Michigan, in our party, and in our country.
We can build a stronger, more welcoming, more courageous Democratic Party.
And I plan to help lead that effort.
https://t.co/7tDAMPJoIy
— Haley Stevens (@HaleyforMI) November 3, 2026
The post Haley Stevens Releases 887-Word Response Slamming Democratic Party for Abandoning Her After Mike Rogers Endorsement: “Abdul El-Sayed is Not Fit to Serve in the United States Senate” appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.