Democratic nominee for US Senate Abdul El-Sayed, talks during a televised debate with Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Mike Rogers at WOOD-TV, on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, in Grand Rapids, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, Pool)
In the video, a couple shopping at a supermarket attributes higher grocery prices to U.S. military aid for Israel.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed rejected defeated primary rival Rep. Haley Stevens’ demand that he condemn an advertisement widely denounced as antisemitic, deepening a dispute between the two Democrats ahead of Tuesday’s vote.
Stevens had conditioned her participation alongside El-Sayed at a Democratic unity event on his explicitly denouncing the Rebellion PAC video.
She also sought an apology for his previous rhetoric concerning Israel and demanded that his campaign remove a clip featuring Tucker Carlson.
Rather than directly condemn the advertisement, El-Sayed accused Stevens of attempting to “relitigate a primary that ended three months ago.”
He pointed to his victory despite tens of millions of dollars in corporate and AIPAC-backed spending against him and called on Democrats to concentrate on defeating Republican nominee Mike Rogers.
By Saturday, plans for the two former rivals to demonstrate party unity had fallen apart. El-Sayed’s campaign asked Stevens not to attend its remaining events, CBS News reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter.
Both candidates had been expected to appear Sunday with Rep. Jim Clyburn at a Detroit church.
At the center of the dispute is an advertisement produced by Rebellion PAC, which was founded by Cenk Uygur.
The video endorsed El-Sayed, though his campaign said it had no affiliation with the advertisement.
In the video, a couple shopping at a supermarket attributes higher grocery prices to U.S. military aid for Israel.
Jewish community leaders and fellow Democrats widely condemned the advertisement, arguing that its connection between domestic inflation and U.S. support for Israel invoked harmful antisemitic tropes involving Jewish financial influence.
Stevens identified Uygur, co-founder of The Young Turks, as “Hasan Piker’s uncle” while challenging El-Sayed over the advertisement.
The confrontation comes three months after El-Sayed defeated Stevens in the Democratic primary and has disrupted efforts to present a united Democratic front before the election against Rogers on Tuesday.
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