Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed’s campaign has told former primary rival Rep. Haley Stevens to stay away from his events, days before Tuesday’s election. The message, reported by The New York Times and Politico, landed just as the two Democrats were due to appear together for the first time in months.
The rift flared on Friday, when Stevens demanded that El-Sayed condemn an outside group’s advertisement that linked US military aid to Israel to high grocery prices. El-Sayed’s campaign said the ad was not affiliated with his campaign. In a statement, El-Sayed accused Stevens of relitigating a primary that ended three months ago and said the focus should stay on defeating Republican nominee Mike Rogers.
Stevens narrowly lost the August Democratic primary to El-Sayed and endorsed him shortly afterwards. The pair had planned to appear together on Sunday at a Detroit church service, an event arranged with help from Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina. By Saturday, El-Sayed’s campaign had dropped Stevens’ name from the event listing, according to reports.
The public split has worried other Michigan Democrats. State Sen. Mallory McMorrow told CNN she did not know what Stevens was doing, adding that the stakes in the race were high. Stevens’ fiance, Jason Turkish, has endorsed Rogers and campaigned for him.
El-Sayed faces Rogers on Tuesday in a close contest that could help decide control of the Senate. No Republican has won a US Senate race in Michigan since 1994, and polls show a tight race.
Source: New York Post
