Rep. Haley Stevens pitched herself as a “workhorse” on Capitol Hill. Abdul El-Sayed said he represents “a threat to politics as usual.”
The two remaining Democrats competing in Michigan’s August 4 primary to take on Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers in one of the most important Senate races of this year’s midterm elections faced off in a tense debate Tuesday night. The clash highlighted their huge differences in style and their different visions for the role they seek to play in the party.
The stakes for the debate grew after a third contender in the race, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow, ended her campaign Sunday – positioning the primary as a true showdown between the Democratic Party’s progressive insurgency and its more moderate establishment forces. It’s playing out in a state that’s poised to play a critical role not just in the 2026 midterms, but in 2028: Michigan is likely to vote early in the Democratic presidential nominating contest, and the state is one of the most important general election presidential battlegrounds.
El-Sayed and Stevens squared off over campaign funding, specifically from allies of Israel, as well as regulating artificial intelligence, free trade pacts and more in the one-hour debate.
