BIRMINGHAM, Michigan — Jason Turkish, the Jewish Democratic fiance of Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), said Wednesday he plans to vote for Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan’s closely watched Senate race, accusing Democratic nominee Abdul el Sayed of making the community less safe for Jews and saying his association with controversial political streamer Hasan Piker should disqualify him from receiving the Jewish vote.
Turkish, a disabilities and civil rights attorney from Huntington Woods, told the Washington Examiner that he had hoped el Sayed would use the time since winning the Democratic primary to move beyond the divisions over Israel and unite the party. Instead, Turkish said, he has become convinced that el Sayed’s rhetoric and associations make him unfit for the Senate.
“You can support Democrats up and down the ballot and make a choice to choose country over party in one race,” Turkish said. “The message is simple. The time is always right to do what is right, but we have an election coming in Michigan, and I know who won my vote. And it is not somebody who stands on a stage in front of college kids with a man who says America deserves 9/11.”
“I believe that Abdul el Sayed is actively losing this campaign for Senate right now by not standing up against hate and that history will remember who stands where in this moment and that it will not remember Abdul el Sayed kindly, and we need to push his hateful brand of politics to the dustbin of history,” he added.
Turkish made the remarks at a Republican Jewish Coalition event in the Detroit-area community featuring Rogers and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters and local Jewish community leaders also attended.
His decision to back Rogers puts him at odds with the Democratic nominee in a race that could help determine Senate control. It also comes as Stevens, who lost the Democratic primary to el Sayed in August, has struggled to demonstrate enthusiasm for her former rival’s candidacy even as she has endorsed him.
Stevens has not appeared at a campaign event with el Sayed since the immediate aftermath of the primary, and the two have not spoken directly in recent months, according to CNN. On Sunday, when CNN anchor Dana Bash pressed Stevens on whether she was still fully behind el Sayed, she replied, “Look, I’m on the Democratic ticket. I can’t say that I agree with everything that’s gone on.”
Asked whether she was still on the Democrats’ side, Stevens said, “I’m on the team.”
Turkish said his decision would not change his relationship with Stevens, who has focused on helping Democrats win House races rather than campaigning alongside the Senate nominee.
“My fiancee and I tell each other, no matter what we do, whether we agree or disagree, that we support one another,” Turkish said. “And so I support her.”
Turkish said Stevens was working to flip four Republican-held House seats and help House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) become the first black speaker of the House. She began that effort within hours of the election being called, he said.
“I love Haley,” he said. “I support her, and I know she supports me as well, even if we’re not in the same room together tonight.”
Stevens endorsed el Sayed after conceding the August primary, saying at the time that she wanted to help defeat Rogers in November. She had campaigned against el Sayed on differences over Israel, his progressive platform, and his electability in a general election.
But the uneasy relationship between the former rivals has become another complication for Democrats as they try to consolidate support in the final days of the campaign. Stevens has continued to campaign for other Democrats, while el Sayed faces questions about whether he can win over voters who preferred her in the primary.
Turkish said he initially hoped el Sayed would make a concerted effort to bridge those divides, particularly among Jewish voters concerned about his criticism of Israel and his associations with figures they consider hostile to the Jewish community.
Instead, Turkish singled out el Sayed’s appearance with Piker, a left-wing streamer whose comments about terrorism and American foreign policy have drawn widespread criticism. He also said he took issue with a commercial that featured a couple in a grocery store arguing over rising prices for items like eggs and bananas and tying those costs to U.S. military aid and foreign spending involving Israel.
TRUMP. VANCE, AND THE ‘JIHADIST’ EL SAYED
El Sayed has campaigned as a progressive critic of U.S. support for Israel and has sought to mobilize voters who oppose the Israeli government’s conduct in Gaza. His candidacy has exposed deep divisions within the Democratic Party over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and how far the party should move toward its progressive wing. Since winning the primary, el Sayed has secured support from progressive leaders including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who hit the campaign trail with him.
Rogers, a former congressman who narrowly lost a 2024 Senate race to Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), has tried to portray el Sayed as too far left for Michigan. The Republican has made the Democratic nominee’s positions on Israel and other progressive policies central to his effort to win the seat held by retiring Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI).