Michigan Democrats Feud in Public Days Before Senate Showdown

Michigan Democrats Feud in Public Days Before Senate Showdown

Campaign asks Stevens to skip final events

Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed's campaign has asked former primary rival Rep. Haley Stevens to stay away from all campaign events in the closing days of the Michigan race, so as not to distract from the central issues. According to CNN and POLITICO, citing people familiar with the decision, a unity appearance planned for Sunday, Nov. 1, at a Detroit church may now go ahead without Stevens.

Stevens says she will show up if ad is condemned

Stevens says she still plans to appear alongside El-Sayed and Rep. Jim Clyburn at the Detroit church. According to The Detroit News and NBC News, she said Clyburn invited her and she was honored to join him. She conditioned the joint appearance on El-Sayed formally condemning an outside-group ad critical of Israel and addressing past statements on Israel. She said she is voting for the Democratic nominee but wants the campaign to shut out hate and call it out.

Outside grocery-price ad revives Israel divide

The ad at issue was produced by Rebellion PAC, an outside group supporting El-Sayed, not by his campaign. According to PolitiFact, the digital spot shows a couple grocery shopping, with the woman saying not to buy eggs because they need to set aside 7 dollars for killing Palestinians, blaming high prices on U.S. support for Israel. El-Sayed's team distanced itself from the ad without condemning its substance, which Stevens called insufficient. The clash revives primary wounds: nearly 60 million dollars was spent on advertising attacking El-Sayed, including 30 million dollars from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC. Stevens is a staunch supporter of Israel.

Fiance's defection deepens embarrassment for Democrats

Stevens' fiance, Jason Turkish, a Jewish civil rights attorney and registered Democrat, said he will vote for Republican Mike Rogers. According to Fox News and The Hill, Turkish said he had seen an escalation in rhetoric since the primary that makes people unsafe, adding that every time El-Sayed talks about genocide in Gaza, Jews get death threats. Stevens' former campaign chair David Kramer also said he plans to vote for Rogers. Stevens told CNN she is still voting for El-Sayed and wants him to win, describing her household as divided.

Polls favor El-Sayed but youth turnout holds the key

Polling still favors Democrats. According to ClickOnDetroit, citing a WDIV and The Detroit News survey by Glengariff Group, El-Sayed leads Rogers 51.4 percent to 45.1 percent, with 3.6 percent undecided. According to USA TODAY, El-Sayed takes over 77 percent of voters younger than 30 and 59.5 percent of those in their 30s, while Rogers wins nearly 54 percent of seniors 65 and older. According to the Lansing State Journal, an Oct. 15-18 Marist Poll had El-Sayed ahead 52 percent to 45 percent among registered voters and 50 percent to 48 percent among likely voters, while an Oct. 21-22 InsiderAdvantage poll had it at 47 percent to 46 percent. According to The Hill, citing Decision Desk HQ, El-Sayed has a 69 percent chance of winning to 31 percent for Rogers. Michigan early voting started Oct. 24, and the general election is Nov. 3. El-Sayed and Stevens last appeared together on Aug. 6, two days after the Aug. 4 primary.

Discussion: When winning requires sharing a stage with a rival you distrust, should leaders prioritize a show of unity or a frank airing of differences first?