Democratic Congresswoman Haley Stevens appeared alongside Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers at a church in Detroit on Sunday, amid growing tensions with Michigan Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed.
According to CNN, Stevens had originally been expected to attend a Democratic unity event with El-Sayed, who defeated her in a closely contested primary election earlier this year.
Instead, Rogers’ spokesperson Abby Ronson shared a photograph of Stevens and the Republican candidate together at a Detroit church.
“HAPPENING NOW: Congresswoman Haley Stevens joins Mike Rogers at church in Detroit this morning,” Ronson wrote on X.
Meanwhile, El-Sayed was scheduled to campaign with Democratic Representative Jim Clyburn elsewhere in the city.
The dispute between Stevens and El-Sayed intensified after Stevens demanded that he condemn a political advertisement produced by an outside group.
The advertisement linked rising living costs in the United States to American financial support for Israel.
On Saturday, El-Sayed said he disagreed with the advertisement’s content, prompting Stevens to welcome his response.
However, a source from Rogers’ campaign told CNN that El-Sayed’s later comments downplaying the disagreement had influenced Stevens’ decision to appear with the Republican.
“I just really don’t think any of this matters,” El-Sayed told reporters on Saturday.
He argued that voters were more concerned about the cost of living than disagreements between Democratic politicians.
