Newsom on Stevens: Obviously it’s ‘sub-optimal’

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Sunday said Rep. Haley Stevens’s (D-Mich.) endorsement of Michigan Senate candidate Mike Rogers (R) over Democrat Abdul El-Sayed was “sub-optimal.”

Newsom spoke on “Decision Desk ’26 Midterm Preview” for an interview with 2WAY in collaboration with The Hill and NewsNation, where he was asked about the late endorsement. He called it an “October surprise of sorts” happening on Nov. 1.

“I don’t know enough about what ultimately led her to make that decision outside of what she said in that video , and she certainly has the right to do that, and I don’t condemn her on that basis,” Newsom said. “I don’t agree with her and made that point clear…”

“As I said, this was sub-optimal in every way, shape or form, and it’s an opportunity for you and your colleagues, and it’s about all you’ve got, with respect, in terms of this election,” he added. “Because it’s been pretty, pretty thin out there. It has been tough.”

Newsom said he didn’t have a double-standard for placing party over country or vice versa, “that’s why I’m not condemning her statement.”

“That’s her judgment, it was her determination. What’s difficult, and you know this Larry, she went 180 degrees overnight. So something else was going on there,” Newsom told conservative commentator Larry O’Connor.

The California Democrat noted that this incident was “exactly the conversation” Republicans want people to have, and he said Stevens was “successful in taking her eye off the ball.”

“And that’s why I understand party leadership condemning it and try to unify it,” he continued. “This moment on a critically important race –– we can look back and this may be that decisive moment.”

Stevens endorsed Rogers after she was due to attend a campaign event with El-Sayed before he dropped her from the event, according to sources familiar with the matter. Stevens appeared with Rogers at church Sunday to show her support two days before the midterm election.

The two Democrats faced-off in a bitter primary battle that ended with a narrow victory for El-Sayed. The two represented the divide within the Democratic Party, as both candidates differed over U.S. support for Israel after its years-long military campaign in Gaza.

Republicans were swift to praise Stevens for her endorsement, with the Republican National Committee (RNC) saying Michiganders “should take notice” and credited Rogers for building a “winning coalition” that included Democrats.

President Trump called the endorsement “BIG” and said he would “ love to have ” Stevens join the GOP. He said her actions were “the right thing” and “brave.”

Democrats lambasted the endorsement , with some calling it a betrayal. Michigan Democrats fumed, with Michigan Democratic Party chair Curtis Hertel saying Stevens is no longer a “current member of the Michigan Democratic Party” and “nor will she be in the future.”