Michigan Congresswoman’s Fiancé Crossed Over to Mike Rogers and Her CNN Response About It Just Made It Worse

Andrey_Popov image via Shutterstock
Andrey_Popov image via Shutterstock

Abdul El-Sayed stood on a Grand Rapids debate stage and refused to say Iran is more dangerous than Israel.

A Jewish Democrat who went to college with El-Sayed watched that answer and made up his mind.

Then his fiancée, the congresswoman El-Sayed beat in the primary, went on CNN and every word sounded like a warning label.

Jason Turkish Told a Republican Jewish Coalition Crowd He Is Voting for Rogers

Jason Turkish is engaged to Rep. Haley Stevens, the Democrat El-Sayed beat in the August primary.

Despite his last name, he is also a prominent Jewish Democrat who raised money for Sen. Elissa Slotkin in 2024.

Turkish went to the University of Michigan with El-Sayed.

Now he has announced that he will vote for Republican Mike Rogers, and then showed up at a Republican Jewish Coalition event for Rogers to explain why.

The Grand Rapids debate settled it.

Asked whether Iran or Israel posed the bigger threat, El-Sayed answered, "I think both of them have proven dangerous in their own way."

"It is 100% disqualifying to be a United States senator," Turkish told reporters, according to Jewish Insider.

He also tore into a PAC-backed ad that blamed American aid to Israel for high grocery prices.

Turkish labeled it one of the most hateful ads in the history of American politics.

Turkish went after El-Sayed's fundraising pitches that point to Jews and Jewish organizations as a reason to give.

And he branded streamer Hasan Piker, a fixture at El-Sayed rallies, a hateful man.

The El-Sayed campaign distanced itself from the ad but never explicitly condemned what it said.

Turkish described his vote as putting country before party and said he could not live with himself if he stayed quiet.

Stevens Told Kaitlan Collins Her Household Is Divided

Stevens sat down with Kaitlan Collins on CNN to manage the fallout.

Collins pressed her about her fiancé and about whether El-Sayed was doing enough to distance himself from the ads backing him.

She said that, like a lot of families across America, hers is a household divided.

Then she tried to sound loyal.

Stevens said she still wants the Democratic nominee – "his name is Abdul" – to win the race.

She introduced the man at the top of her party's Michigan ticket like a stranger.

And the support came with a list of conditions.

Stevens said El-Sayed should pull a campaign ad featuring Tucker Carlson.

She said he should disavow the grocery ad.

She said voters she meets while canvassing are undecided and hurt.

She named Black, Jewish, Indian American and working-class voters who are uneasy about him.

Only by a real stretch of imagination can you hear the Democrat Congresswoman’s comments as an endorsement.

El-Sayed's answer to all of it was a shrug.

He said voters who disagree with him on one issue are free to make that choice, and that the race is about Senate control.

It’s not hard for many Americans and many Michiganders to see some point of much of his MAGA outreach.

They see things they’re forced to support with their tax dollars and aren’t happy about it – especially not when it’s costing them coming and going.

Ed Koch Helped Flip Anthony Weiner's Seat Over Israel in 2011

Michigan Democrats should remember what happened in New York in 2011.

Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, a Democrat, endorsed Republican Bob Turner to "send a message" to Barack Obama over Israel.

Turner won the heavily Democratic seat Anthony Weiner left behind.

Jewish Democrats who feel taken for granted do not always stay home.

Sometimes they vote Republican.

Turkish is a high-profile defector, but RedState's Nick Arama reports he has company.

Arama notes El-Sayed is struggling to win over Black and Jewish voters.

Marist's October 15–18 survey had El-Sayed at 50 percent and Rogers at 48, inside the margin of error.

A race that tight can turn on a few thousand voters who decide they cannot pull the lever for this nominee.

Stevens Gave Undecided Michigan Democrats Permission to Walk Away

Stevens never told one wavering Jewish voter that El-Sayed deserves their trust.

She told them she understands why they are hurt.

In a race this close, that is not a rescue.

That is a door held wide open.

El-Sayed could not tell a debate audience whether the regime that chants "Death to America" is more dangerous than America's closest ally in the Middle East.

Now he wants Michigan to hand him a Senate seat.

Mike Rogers ran the House Intelligence Committee and never needed a debate stage to figure out which country wants Americans dead.

Rogers just picked up a vote from the fiancé of the woman El-Sayed beat in the Democrat primary.

Stevens' CNN appearance handed every undecided Democrat in Oakland County the same permission slip and many on both sides of the aisle its opposite.

Sources:

  • Nick Arama, "Watch: Haley Stevens 'Support' Statement for El-Sayed May Just Demolish Him," RedState, October 29, 2026.
  • Marc Rod, "Haley Stevens Fiancé Says He's Voting for Mike Rogers," Jewish Insider, October 28, 2026.
  • Warren Squire, "Haley Stevens' Dem Fiancé Picks Republican Mike Rogers Over Abdul El-Sayed Because of Antisemitism," Twitchy, October 29, 2026.
  • Alec Schemmel, "Michigan Senate Debate Erupts Into Personal Attacks as Rogers, El-Sayed Clash Over Israel, Iran and More," Fox News, October 8, 2026.
  • Associated Press, "Republican Wins House Race in New York, Seen as Obama Rebuke," Fox News, September 14, 2011.
  • Marist Poll, "Midterm Elections in Michigan, October 2026," Marist Poll, October 2026.

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