Michigan Senate: Jewish donors split over El-Sayed feud
A public argument between the Democratic nominee and his former primary rival has shaken a key voting bloc just days before the general election.
By Amina Yusuf ·
One Jewish megadonor in Michigan has pledged his vote to the Republican candidate, a decision that underscores the deepening rift within a traditionally Democratic bloc.
US Rep. Haley Stevens, who narrowly lost the Democratic primary to Abdul El-Sayed this summer, is now openly criticizing the Senate nominee. Stevens represents a suburban Detroit district with a large Jewish population. She had previously endorsed El-Sayed and was scheduled to join him at a rally in Detroit on Sunday. That unity has fractured over El-Sayed's recent comments regarding Israel and a political action committee advertisement that blamed the country for rising grocery prices.
Stevens spoke in interviews with The New York Times published Saturday morning. She argued that El-Sayed has not gone far enough in distancing himself from the ad, which was paid for by Rebellion PAC, a project of far-left commentator Cenk Uygur. “We are not going to say that the cost of groceries is because of Jews and the Jewish state,” Stevens said. She added, “Maybe it is what you want people to believe.”
El-Sayed responded in a statement sent to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and other outlets on Friday. He accused Stevens of “relitigating a primary that ended three months ago.” He claimed he had already “defeated” spending from outside groups and AIPAC on Stevens' behalf during the primary. El-Sayed did not directly address the Uygur ad in that statement. He also did not mention a separate ad produced by his own campaign. That ad featured a clip of far-right commentator Tucker Carlson announcing he would not vote for the Republican nominee, Mike Rogers. Stevens had urged El-Sayed to remove the Carlson ad, which aired on conservative television channels.
The El-Sayed campaign has removed Stevens’ name from the description of its Sunday event at a Detroit church. The event will now feature Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina. Other reports indicate the campaign asked Stevens to avoid future events. Stevens and her fiancé, Jason Turkish, did not return requests for comment regarding the changes.
Turkish said this week he would vote for Rogers. Both he and Stevens cited a recent debate as their final breaking point with El-Sayed. During that debate, El-Sayed declined to state whether Israel or Iran posed a greater threat to the United States. Stevens wrote on social media that the ad “dramatized” an argument El-Sayed had made in his own words throughout the campaign. She said, “Abdul promises to get money out of politics. He can begin by getting Israel out of his explanation for everything Michigan cannot afford.”
El-Sayed also condemned comments made by anti-Israel streamer Hasan Piker, who is Uygur's nephew. Piker compared the Detroit suburb of West Bloomfield to a “KKK neighborhood.” El-Sayed, who grew up near West Bloomfield, called the comparison “utterly inappropriate and flat-out wrong” in a statement to Jewish Insider.
Republican nominee Mike Rogers is using the feud to appeal to Jewish voters who supported Stevens in the primary. President Donald Trump recently called Jews who back El-Sayed “crazy,” a remark that drew condemnation from some Jewish leaders. The Michigan Senate race is tight, and the outcome will help determine which party controls the chamber.
Source: The Jerusalem Post
