Abdul El-Sayed’s Republican opponent directly pitches Democrats, hoping to capitalize after divisive primary

Mike Rogers, the Republican nominee for Senate in Michigan, is stepping up his efforts to appeal to Democrats after their party picked progressive Abdul El-Sayed as their standard-bearer in the battleground race.

In a new video first shared with CNN, Rogers speaks directly to camera to make his case to Democrats disappointed with the outcome of their Tuesday primary. El-Sayed, a former public health official, defeated Rep. Haley Stevens by 1 percentage point after a contentious primary that left hard feelings among supporters of both candidates .

“If you’re among the majority of Democratic voters who woke up on Wednesday feeling, well, hopeless because the person who won does not represent your values, well, just know, there is still hope,” Rogers says. “Michigan deserves a senator who is ready to sit with you, hear from you and represent you.”

Democratic leaders from Washington to Michigan have quickly rallied behind El-Sayed, though Republicans are hoping to emphasize on lingering divisions from the bruising primary. Stevens has already endorsed El-Sayed, and the two hugged at a unity event Thursday. Both have also criticized Rogers and have emphasized stressed the importance of Democrats retaining the seat in November.

In the video, Rogers sits beside his wife, Kristi, and appeals to a handful of voting blocs in particular, such as young people who want more affordable housing. He tells them they “have a home with” his campaign and promises to work hard to earn their support.

El-Sayed has also made a bipartisan pitch. In his victory speech Wednesday, he invited people to join his campaign “if you supported me or you did not support me, if you voted for Vice President [Kamala] Harris in 2024 or you voted for Donald Trump.”

Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP

At the same time, El-Sayed has not held back against Rogers, calling him beholden to corporate interests and a candidate who has sought to “lick every single boot Donald Trump owns.”

The issue of the US-Israel relationship was one of the main sources of friction in the Democratic primary. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee spent more than $30 million through its super PAC to go after El-Sayed, a sharp critic of Israel. After he won, the group said its members “remain determined to ensure that voters reject Dr. El-Sayed and his radical anti-Israel agenda in November.”

Rogers doesn’t directly reference Jewish voters in the video but echoes criticisms he has already made over El-Sayed campaigning with Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, who previously said America “deserved” the September 11 attacks, a comment for which Piker has since apologized.

“And to the vast majority of people across Michigan who do not want to throw their support behind a campaign filled with anger, divisiveness, calls for violence and views that are out of touch with your values, well, you have a home with us,” Rogers says.

Democrats are set to continue their unification efforts with a rally Friday in Detroit headlined by former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who lives in Michigan.

During an interview Thursday on CNN’s “The Story Is with Elex Michaelson,” Stevens said she was open to campaigning with El-Sayed and was confident he would win in November.

“I told everyone I’ll do whatever they want,” she said. “It’s all good. The fight now is Abdul beating Rogers.”

密歇根州共和党参议员候选人迈克·罗杰斯正在加紧努力争取民主党人的支持，此前民主党选择了进步派候选人阿卜杜勒·埃尔-赛义德作为该州这场关键选战的领军人物。

在一段率先发布给 CNN 的新视频中，罗杰斯直接对着镜头，向对周二初选结果感到失望的民主党人阐述他的观点。前公共卫生官员埃尔-赛义德在竞争激烈的初选后，以 1 个百分点的优势击败了众议员海莉·史蒂文斯，这场初选也让双方的支持者都感到不满。

罗杰斯说：“如果你是周三早上醒来后感到绝望的大多数民主党选民之一，因为当选者并不代表你的价值观，那么请记住，希望犹存。密歇根州需要一位愿意与你坐下来，倾听你的声音，并代表你利益的参议员。”

从华盛顿到密歇根，民主党领导人迅速团结在埃尔-赛义德周围，而共和党人则希望利用初选造成的激烈分歧来扩大支持。史蒂文斯已经公开支持埃尔-赛义德，两人周四在一次团结活动上拥抱致意。他们还都批评了罗杰斯，并强调民主党在11月保住这个席位的重要性。

视频中，罗杰斯坐在妻子克里斯蒂身旁，重点争取一些特定选民群体的支持，例如希望住房更加经济实惠的年轻人。他告诉他们，他的竞选活动“为他们提供了一个家”，并承诺将努力赢得他们的支持。

埃尔-赛义德也采取了跨党派的策略。在周三的胜选演讲中，他邀请人们加入他的竞选活动，“无论你支持我还是不支持我，无论你在2024年投票给了副总统卡马拉·哈里斯还是投票给了唐纳德·特朗普。”

朱莉娅·德马雷·尼金森/美联社

与此同时，埃尔-赛义德毫不留情地抨击罗杰斯，称他受制于企业利益，是一个试图“舔唐纳德·特朗普的每一只靴子”的候选人。

美以关系问题是民主党初选的主要摩擦点之一。美国以色列公共事务委员会通过其超级政治行动委员会花费超过3000万美元攻击埃尔-赛义德，后者是以色列的尖锐批评者。埃尔-赛义德胜选后，该组织表示，其成员“仍然决心确保选民在11月的大选中否决埃尔-赛义德博士及其激进的反以色列议程”。

罗杰斯在视频中没有直接提及犹太选民，但他重申了自己之前对埃尔-赛义德与 Twitch 主播哈桑·皮克尔一起竞选的批评。皮克尔此前曾表示美国“活该”遭受 9·11 袭击，皮克尔后来为此言论道歉。

罗杰斯说：“对于密歇根州绝大多数不愿支持一场充满愤怒、分裂、煽动暴力和与你们价值观脱节的竞选活动的人们来说，我们欢迎你们加入我们。”

民主党人计划继续他们的团结努力，将于周五在底特律举行集会，前交通部长皮特·布蒂吉格（Pete Buttigieg）将领衔出席，他目前居住在密歇根州。

周四，史蒂文斯在接受 CNN 的“The Story Is with Elex Michaelson”节目采访时表示，她愿意与埃尔-赛义德一起竞选，并相信他会在 11 月赢得大选。

“我告诉所有人，他们想让我做什么我都愿意，”她说。“一切都好。现在的问题是阿卜杜勒如何击败罗杰斯。”