House Democratic leaders are holding off on deciding whether to punish Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., after she endorsed a Republican in Michigan’s Senate race, drawing calls from fellow Democrats for her removal from the party’s House caucus.
Stevens endorsed former Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., over Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, a former public health official, on Nov. 1 — just two days before Tuesday’s midterm elections.
The decision prompted sharp criticism from Democrats, including lawmakers who want Stevens expelled from the House Democratic Caucus, but party leaders are waiting until after the elections to address her future.
A senior Democratic aide told Fox News Digital that House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., would likely support House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., in his response to Stevens’ endorsement.
HALEY STEVENS’ FIANCE HAMMERS EL-SAYED, SAYS HE’LL VOTE FOR ROGERS
“Haley Stevens made a terrible decision, blindsided everyone and isolated herself from the House Democratic caucus. We will have a discussion about appropriate next steps upon our return,” Jeffries told POLITICO.
Spokespeople for Jeffries and Aguilar did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
Stevens, a four-term lawmaker, is leaving Congress at the end of the year after narrowly losing Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary to El-Sayed.
Since her loss, Stevens has taken a lukewarm approach to supporting El-Sayed’s campaign while also criticizing his approach to Israel and Jewish and Black voters.
BLACK VOTERS, JEWISH DEMOCRATS IN MICHIGAN WARY OF VOTING FOR EL-SAYED, SAY ‘HE’S TAKING ADVANTAGE’
That fragile peace ruptured over the weekend when El-Sayed’s campaign publicly asked Stevens to abstain from appearing at any of his events even after she said she would attend church with him and Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., in a bid to mobilize Black voters.
Stevens apparently blindsided fellow Democrats when she then appeared at another church alongside Rogers and his wife and subsequently endorsed the Republican ahead of Election Day.
EL-SAYED’S PAST MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD COMMENTS RAISE RED FLAGS AS HE EYES POWERFUL ROLE
Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., said during a Sunday appearance on CNN that Stevens had reassured her “multiple times” over the weekend that she would not endorse Rogers.
“I don’t know what changed between late Saturday and Sunday morning,” Dingell said during another CNN appearance Monday.
And the endorsement also spurred her ouster from the Michigan state Democratic Party.
Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Curtis Hertel wrote on X that Stevens “is not a current member of the Michigan Democratic Party, nor will she be in the future” after she backed Rogers.
In the House, Democratic officials, such as Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., have already called for Stevens’ removal.
“Deplorable and embarrassing. Capitulating to fascism, Islamophobia, racism and the policies hurting everyday Americans makes you unfit to serve with the Democratic caucus,” Ramirez wrote on X. “Shame on Haley Stevens. She must be removed from the caucus.”
HALEY STEVENS CONDEMNS HASAN PIKER BUT RALLIES BEHIND EL-SAYED AFTER NARROW PRIMARY LOSS
Ramirez did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., echoed Ramirez’s claim and added that Stevens “has no place in our party,” according to POLITICO.
Vocal organizations aligned with the Democratic Party, such as the IfNotNow movement, have also formally called on the congresswoman to be removed from the caucus, calling her endorsement a betrayal to the party.
“As national organizations representing Jewish, Muslim, and Democratic voters opposed to Donald Trump’s war on Iran, which is responsible for the rising costs of gas and groceries and an affordability crisis that is taking a heavy toll on working families at a time when the future of our democracy is at stake,” the organization said in a statement shared with Fox News Digital. “We call on House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries to expel Congresswoman Stevens from the Democratic Caucus and strip her of her committee assignments.”
If Stevens was removed from the caucus, she would no longer be able to attend its weekly meetings in the U.S. Capitol. Democrats could also pursue action against her committee assignments, though the process and authority for doing so would need to be determined under the applicable caucus and House rules.
And it appears Stevens’ staff has also shunned her over the endorsement. When Fox News Digital reached out to her office for comment on the backlash from House Democrats, an automated response from her communications director said he is “no longer with the Office of Congresswoman Haley Stevens” as of Nov. 1, the day she backed Rogers.
