Mike Rogers is making a direct appeal to Michigan Democrats after Abdul El-Sayed’s primary win, telling voters who feel disconnected from the new nominee that they still have options. His message is simple and pointed: if the candidate on the other side does not reflect their values, Rogers wants them to take a closer look at his campaign.
Rogers, the Republican Senate nominee, said Democratic voters who woke up after the primary feeling discouraged should not assume they are stuck. In a video posted Friday, he told them, “If you’re among the majority of Democratic voters that woke up on Wednesday feeling, well, hopeless, because the person who won does not represent your values, well, just know, there is still hope,”
He followed that with another direct line: “Michigan deserves a senator who is ready to sit with you, hear from you and represent you.”
El-Sayed edged out Rep. Haley Stevens in one of the most closely watched Democratic primaries in the country, setting up a November race with Rogers, who faced no opposition in his own primary. The result gave Rogers a chance to pitch himself as the safer landing spot for Democrats uneasy with where their party is headed.
That pitch was aimed at more than party labels. Rogers said parents want schools that help their children succeed, grandparents want to see their kids and grandkids stay in Michigan, young people need real answers on housing costs, and working families want paychecks that are not eaten up by higher taxes.
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“The parents across Michigan who want an education system that sets up their kids for success, you have a home with us,” he said. “To grandparents across Michigan who are heartbroken from watching their kids and grandkids leave the state, you have a home with us.” He added that young people seeking relief from the housing crunch and workers worried about taxes also have a place with his campaign.
Rogers did not stop at a warm invitation. He also went after El-Sayed’s campaign as one built on “anger, divisiveness, calls for violence” and argued that many Michigan voters do not want to be tied to that kind of politics. “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 the views that are out of touch with your values, well, you have a home with us,” he said.
The race has obvious stakes for Republicans. If Rogers wins in November, the seat now held by retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters would flip, giving the GOP another edge in the battle for Senate control. That makes Michigan one of the most important states on the board, and Rogers is clearly trying to widen his path beyond the usual Republican base.
Rogers also framed the next stretch of the campaign as a test of trust and endurance. “Over the next 90 days, I’m going to work hard to earn your trust, to earn your support and earn your vote,” he said. “We have a state to save, Michigan. Let’s get to work.”
His outreach to Democrats drew attention online, with some conservatives and commentators praising the move as smart politics. In a , former DSA member Jake Altman wrote, “I voted for Biden. I voted for Harris. I will vote for Mike Rogers. I just donated to the campaign. This is not a time to sit on your hands. Stand up for the man who fights terrorists, not the one who sympathizes with them.”
“Mike Rogers directly asks for Democrats to support him in Michigan. The majority of Michigan Democrats voted against Abdul El-Sayed. This is well done,” OutKick founder Clay Travis .
In another , Democrats for Mike Rogers wrote, “Mike Rogers is meeting the moment. We’re putting country over party and voting for Mike Rogers in November. It’s never been more important. We must unite and defeat the extremism of Abdul El-Sayed and his allies.”
El-Sayed, an epidemiologist and former Wayne County health director, has leaned into a hard-left platform that includes Medicare for all and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He has also been outspoken on Israel, calling its actions in Gaza “genocide” and criticizing the country during its war with Hamas.
That record has become part of the larger clash in the race, especially as Democrats try to sort out what kind of message they want attached to their party in a state as politically mixed as Michigan. Rogers argued the bigger fight is not just about left versus right, but about the direction the country is heading.
“The fight is far greater than just left versus right,” he said. “The fight is for the very soul of our nation.”
Fox News Digital reached out to El Sayed’s campaign for comment.
