Michigan Democrats push to galvanise voters after stunning Senate race defection

Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed and fellow Michigan Democrats scrambled on Monday to refocus attention on turning out voters for election day after his former primary rival stunned the party by endorsing the Republican candidate in one of the country’s most closely watched races.

The final push before Tuesday’s midterms followed a dramatic Sunday, when Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Mike Rogers after appearing alongside him at church.

It prompted her expulsion from the state Democratic Party and drew fierce condemnation from party leaders, including long-time allies.

Speaking on Monday morning at Eastern Michigan University, Mr El-Sayed made no mention of the controversy, instead emphasising that his campaign was about voters, not himself.

Asked afterwards what he would tell supporters who were nervous about the impact of Ms Stevens’s endorsement on the race, Mr El-Sayed had a simple message: “Go vote.”

“There’s only one thing we can do to control the outcome,” he added.

He was joined at Monday’s rally by Elizabeth Warren and his grandparents, who greeted the crowd.

With more than 2.3 million Michigan voters having already cast their ballots as of Monday, the question is whether the extraordinary political drama will matter to those who have yet to vote.

Nearly 4.5 million people voted in the 2022 midterms. The state’s regular early in-person voting period ended on Sunday, with polls reopening state-wide on Tuesday.

Lori Goldman, a long-time Democratic organiser, said: “Well, around half of people have already voted. But for the rest, it could matter a hell of a lot.”

For Mr Rogers and Republicans, the endorsement represented a remarkable political coup.

Mr Rogers personally reached out to Ms Stevens over the weekend, according to a person with direct knowledge of the discussions.

Even Mr Rogers’s own staff were unaware of the planned joint appearance at Perfecting Church until Sunday morning and learned of Ms Stevens’s endorsement only when it was posted online, the person said.

The campaign was touting the endorsement to voters on Monday.

For Democrats, the defection exposed lingering divisions over Mr El-Sayed, who narrowly defeated Ms Stevens in an expensive and bruising primary marked by disagreements over Israel and the war in Gaza.

Party leaders had spent the final weeks of the campaign trying to shore up support for Mr El-Sayed, particularly among Jewish and Black voters who had strongly backed Ms Stevens.

Those leaders — including some who have remained critical of their nominee — rebuked Ms Stevens and said it would only energise their base.

Mr El-Sayed reported raising 2.4 million dollars on Sunday, his largest fundraising day of the campaign, while the state party said it saw a surge of people volunteering to knock on doors.

Michigan Democratic Party chairman Curtis Hertel said: “I don’t think this changes the election results other than it galvanises Democrats.”

Few anticipated what would happen Sunday morning, when Ms Stevens walked into a Detroit church alongside Mr Rogers and stood with him in the pews. She announced her endorsement of the Republican shortly afterward.

Later in an interview, Ms Stevens said: “This is about Abdul getting angrier and angrier and saying, ‘I don’t want these people in my campaign’.

“This is a weight off my shoulders. I’m being straight with everybody.”