Stevens Endorses Rogers, Prompting Calls for Caucus Removal

Rep. Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Mike Rogers for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat on November 1, reversing her support for Democrat Abdul ElSayed and prompting calls from Democrats for her removal from the House Democratic Caucus. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said party leaders would discuss appropriate next steps when they returned, but no decision on Stevens’s caucus status had been announced by November 2. Stevens had backed ElSayed shortly after losing the Democratic Senate primary to him in August. She appeared with Rogers at a Detroit church on Sunday and then publicly endorsed him, after a dispute over an advertisement about Israel and the war in Gaza. The ad was produced by an outside group, not ElSayed’s campaign. ElSayed said he disagreed with its contents; his campaign had also asked Stevens not to attend its event. Stevens told CNN she still wanted Democrats to win control of the Senate and characterized her endorsement as an honest response to what she was hearing from constituents. She did not explain in detail why she had switched her support. ElSayed responded that his focus was on Michigan voters and their concerns, rather than Stevens. The...