GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Two Democratic candidates vying for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat faced off in a spirited debate, clashing over inflation, foreign policy, immigration and campaign finance during night one of Debate Week at Wood TV studios in Grand Rapids.
U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed offered sharply different visions for Michigan and the Democratic Party, as they competed for the chance to face Republican Mike Rogers in what both described as one of the most consequential Senate races in the country.
Recommended Videos
Inflation, affordability top concerns
Moderator Rick Albin opened the debate by asking candidates what one proactive step they would take to make Michiganders’ lives more affordable.
El-Sayed said the solution starts with systemic change.
“I’ve been up and down my state, 110 different cities, 450 public events. No matter where I go, people say the same thing: I just can’t afford to live here anymore,” El-Sayed said. “We need to tackle health care by guaranteeing everybody health care without a deductible, a premium, or a copay through Medicare for All.”
Stevens framed herself as the more proven fighter on costs.
“As your next United States senator, I will run through anyone and anything to lower cost, my no-tariff-on-groceries bill, my bill to lower your utility bill,” Stevens said. “I’m the only person running for United States Senate in Michigan who is not a millionaire.”
El-Sayed fired back, pointing to outside spending in the race.
“We also don’t need politicians bought off by corporations,” he said. “Not one of those ads was brought to you by the Congresswoman’s campaign. All of them were brought to you by corporate PACs and AIPAC, trying to buy a politician who’s gonna do their bidding instead of yours.”
Stevens pressed El-Sayed on financial transparency.
“Transparency is oh so important, and this is why I have released my tax returns,” Stevens said. “Abdul, you talk about getting money out of politics and putting money in people’s pockets, but who is putting money into yours? What are you hiding?”
Iran, Middle East policy spark sharp exchanges
The debate shifted to foreign policy after Albin noted that the United States military had launched strikes following attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Stevens emphasized Michigan’s interests above all.
“Donald Trump selling us out to this war in Iran that no one asked for — that is raising costs for every Michigander is totally unacceptable,” Stevens said. “No illegal wars, no unilateral wars at our expense.”
El-Sayed blamed foreign influence on U.S. policy.
“There is one man who’s been wanting this war fought, and that is the Prime Minister of Israel,” El-Sayed said. “The reason that we’ve seen this war fought is because of the impact of AIPAC in our politics. They’ve called me the most dangerous candidate for the U.S.-Israel relationship because maybe I don’t want to waste our money fighting wars we don’t need to fight.”
Stevens challenged El-Sayed’s electability argument.
“The GOP is spending thousands of dollars to prop up your campaign because they think they will make it easier for Mike Rogers to win if you are the nominee,” Stevens said. “I do not plan to make anything easier for Republicans or Mike Rogers.”
Gaza, humanitarian crisis
On the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, El-Sayed called for a fundamental shift in U.S. foreign policy.
“I believe in international law. I believe we have to hold every country to international law, which means we need to stop funding the Israeli military with unilateral blank checks,” El-Sayed said. “I also believe that we cannot continue to sell weapons to a country that is doing human rights abuses, genocide, and apartheid.”
Stevens drew a clear line between herself and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The goal has to be long-term peace,” Stevens said. “It is very clear that Mr. Netanyahu has not made us safer, has not brought us closer to peace, and he’s endangered Jews here in America and around the world. This is why he was just trashing me today on CNN. I am not afraid of bullies.”
Bipartisanship, party direction
A viewer question from Mark Newman asked both candidates to name a specific project requiring bipartisan cooperation.
Stevens pointed to her legislative record.
“I have a plan to lessen Michigan and the United States’ dependence on China, to lower costs and to create good manufacturing jobs,” Stevens said. “There is a reason why the Center for Effective Lawmaking recognized me as the most effective lawmaker for Michigan in Congress.”
El-Sayed targeted trade policy as common ground.
“There is bipartisan support already to blow up the USMCA, which has been a cancer on our manufacturing industry in Michigan and the industrial Midwest,” he said. “Donald Trump’s version of tariffs is like chemotherapy, but you give the patient all the chemo at the same time.”
When asked whether the Democratic Party is shifting too far left, El-Sayed rejected the framing entirely.
“There is no left or right,” El-Sayed said. “Most people out there aren’t asking, ‘Where do I fit on the left-right spectrum?’ They’re asking, ‘Can I afford my groceries?’ It’s not red, it’s not blue. It’s not Democrat, it’s not Republican. It’s American, government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
ICE, immigration enforcement
Moderator Albin asked both candidates how the U.S. should handle the millions of undocumented people in the country, if not through Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
El-Sayed was unequivocal.
“ICE is not about immigration. ICE is not the southern border; I was on the nearly the northern border,” El-Sayed said. “ICE is about normalizing paramilitary force on our streets. You can’t reform ICE. You can’t retrain ICE. You have to abolish ICE.”
Stevens called for accountability while supporting a bipartisan border security bill.
“Donald Trump’s ICE is completely out of control, and it is an abuse of power,” Stevens said. “ICE agents from top to bottom that have committed crimes have to be held accountable. That money needs to be redirected to state and local law enforcement agencies that are responsible for our safety and security.”
El-Sayed challenged Stevens on her past record.
“My colleague voted to thank ICE and increase their budget and also took money from people who run ICE contracts,” El-Sayed said. “I don’t take money from corporations. I don’t take money from ICE contractors, which is why I can say with a clear voice: we need to abolish ICE.”
Child care, Social Security, national debt
On child care affordability, El-Sayed called for making child care entirely free, funded through a tax on billionaire wealth. Stevens pointed to her work securing funding for day care centers during COVID-19 and her support for paid family leave and CDBG grants.
On Social Security, both candidates endorsed eliminating the FICA cap to ensure long-term funding. El-Sayed went further, calling for the elimination of Medicare premiums, co-pays, and deductibles, as well as a property tax freeze for seniors.
On the national debt, which Albin noted stands at more than $39 trillion, both candidates pointed to taxing the wealthy as the primary solution, while opposing tax cuts for billionaires and corporations.
Data centers, AI regulation
Both candidates agreed that data center development should include community benefit agreements and that residents deserve a voice in those decisions.
El-Sayed called for union labor requirements, no utility rate increases, and enforceable community agreements before any data center could be built.
On artificial intelligence regulation, El-Sayed called for spinning off AI corporations as public-interest companies with publicly appointed board members and for creating a federal agency similar to the FDA to oversee AI.
Stevens said she passed her first AI bill into law in 2020 and called for equitable investment and consumer privacy protections.
China, manufacturing
In the debate’s final exchange, both candidates pledged to take a hard line on Chinese competition.
El-Sayed connected the issue to corporate priorities.
“The biggest challenge we have right now, the thing that is throttling our ingenuity, is the fact that our corporations are a lot more interested in a quarterly bottom line than they are in the long-term sustainability of manufacturing,” he said.
Stevens highlighted her legislative work.
“I’ve got the bill, one I also did with Senator Slotkin, the No Chinese Cars Act,” Stevens said. “We can build affordable cars here in Michigan without having the Chinese come in and eat our lunch, not on my watch.”
Closing
Both candidates delivered closing arguments rooted in the themes that defined the night, Stevens emphasizing her record and electability, El-Sayed emphasizing his independence from corporate money and his Medicare for All platform.
The primary winner will face Republican Mike Rogers in what both campaigns called one of the most competitive Senate races in the country.