UNIPA News || WASHINGTON — The Democratic primary race for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat has become a focal point in the party’s growing divisions over U.S. policy toward Israel, with candidates Haley Stevens and Abdul El-Sayed presenting sharply contrasting foreign policy positions.

Haley Stevens, a four-term congresswoman representing Rochester Hills, is campaigning on a platform that maintains the Democratic Party’s traditional support for Israel while advocating for a two-state solution. Stevens argues that backing Israel’s right to exist peacefully alongside a future Palestinian state remains a mainstream and electorally viable position.

“I believe in a two-state solution,” Stevens said, adding that support for Israel does not equate to support for every policy of the current Israeli government. She also voiced support for humanitarian assistance to Gaza and criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying his leadership has neither improved security nor advanced prospects for peace.

Her opponent, Abdul El-Sayed, has made criticism of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and U.S. military support for Israel a central theme of his campaign. El-Sayed argues that American foreign policy has been disproportionately influenced by pro-Israel lobbying and has called for an end to U.S. weapons sales to Israel, alleging human rights violations and describing Israeli policies toward Palestinians as apartheid and genocide.

El-Sayed contends that continued military assistance undermines prospects for establishing a Palestinian state, asserting that U.S. policy should be fundamentally reassessed.

The contest comes amid shifting public opinion within the Democratic Party regarding the U.S.-Israel relationship. Recent polling indicates growing skepticism among Democratic voters over Washington’s support for Israel following the Israel-Hamas war that began after Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. The conflict has resulted in significant casualties on both sides, with Israeli authorities reporting approximately 1,200 people killed and 251 hostages taken during the Hamas attack, while the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry says more than 73,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza during Israel’s military campaign.

An AP-NORC survey released this week found that nearly six in ten Democrats, along with about half of Jewish Democrats, believe the United States is “too supportive of Israel.”

The Michigan primary is being closely watched as an indicator of whether the Democratic Party’s longstanding pro-Israel position can remain politically sustainable amid growing pressure from its progressive wing.

The race will determine the Democratic nominee to succeed retiring Senator Gary Peters and is widely viewed as a test of the party’s direction on Middle East policy ahead of future national elections.

Republicans have argued that the debate over Israel is likely to remain a defining issue in the general election, regardless of which Democratic candidate secures the nomination. Political observers also note that the outcome could influence Democratic strategy in a politically competitive state with sizable Arab American, Muslim and Jewish communities.

The Michigan Senate primary is expected to provide an early measure of how internal Democratic divisions over Israel may shape the party’s national agenda in the years ahead.