Party loyalty has its limits. In Michigan, those limits are being tested. Several prominent Jewish Democrats are ready to jump ship. If Abdul El-Sayed wins the Democratic Senate primary, they are voting Republican. Specifically, they will back GOP candidate Mike Rogers. It is a bitter pill. But for many, it is a necessary one.
According to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, major donors are already hedging their bets. They are quietly preparing to fund Rogers. Dennis Bernard, a heavy hitter with the Jewish Federations of North America, confirmed the anxiety. He noted that lifelong Democratic fundraisers are deeply worried about the party’s direction. Their money and their votes will follow Rogers if El-Sayed clinches the nomination.
Some feel politically homeless. Neil Gorosh, a retired commercial mortgage banker, described himself as “rudderless.” He won’t write Rogers a check, but he will give him his vote. He is telling his friends to do the same. Others are pouring their energy into stopping El-Sayed before the general election. They want Haley Stevens. She has consistently backed Israel’s right to exist. One anonymous Jewish leader put it bluntly: if you care about the U.S.-Israel relationship, you vote Stevens in the primary.
Why the panic? El-Sayed’s rhetoric. He has been a fierce critic of Israel. He once suggested the Israeli government is “just as evil” as Hamas. “Yes, killing tens of thousands of people makes you pretty damn evil,” he told CNN. He refused to distinguish between the two. He has also dodged questions about Israel’s right to exist.
Shimon Levy, a Detroit entrepreneur, did not mince words. “F— that,” he said, dismissing concerns about Republicans taking the Senate. Levy claims El-Sayed has poisoned the well and put local Jews in danger. He warned that Jewish voters sticking blindly to the Democratic ticket need to rethink their survival instincts. It does not help that El-Sayed campaigned with Hasan Piker, a far-left streamer who called Hamas “a thousand times better” than Israel. El-Sayed defended the appearance. His campaign did not respond to requests for comment.
