One of Michigan’s oldest and most prominent newspapers has chosen a side in the state’s highly competitive Senate battle — and it is backing the candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump.
The Detroit News endorsed Republican Mike Rogers over Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed in the contest to replace retiring Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich. The decision gives Rogers a prominent in-state boost as both parties pour attention and money into a race that could help determine control of the Senate.
The editorial board did not merely favor Rogers. It delivered a pointed warning about El-Sayed’s efforts to remove years of old social-media posts, podcast episodes and YouTube videos from public view.
Paper Questions El-Sayed’s Deleted Online Record
El-Sayed “has worked so hard covering his tracks leading up to this Senate race that it’s impossible to know who he really is or where he would stand in the Senate,” The Detroit News wrote.
The newspaper cited deleted posts concerning America and the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, along with roughly 100 removed YouTube videos that it said offered an unflattering look at the Democrat’s cultural views.
“A candidate who feels the need to hide his past from voters is not someone who can be trusted to be the same person after Election Day as he was on the campaign trail,” the board argued.
El-Sayed’s past commentary has become a central Republican line of attack. Fox News reported that his old remarks included proposing an end to Fourth of July fireworks, suggesting that the Second Amendment be replaced with a right to health care and voicing support at one point for the “defund the police” movement. He has also criticized football’s ties to “toxic masculinity” and “bro culture.”
El-Sayed’s campaign previously said some material was removed “to prevent any old posts from being taken out of context.” Around the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the campaign also said El-Sayed “has always unequivocally condemned terrorism and the September 11 attacks,” according to Fox News.
Republicans have repeatedly described El-Sayed as a socialist because of his support for policies including Medicare for All. El-Sayed, however, has distanced himself from that label, and reporting has noted that he is not affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America.
Rogers Wins Praise for Experience
The Detroit News reached a markedly different conclusion about Rogers, calling the former congressman “the prototype of a United States Senator.”
Rogers served seven terms in the House and rose to chair the House Intelligence Committee. Before Congress, he served in the Army and worked as an FBI special agent. After leaving the House in 2015, he entered the private sector and focused on cybersecurity.
“Mike Rogers is clearly the best choice for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat and gets our endorsement,” the board wrote, according to Michigan News Source.
The endorsement is particularly notable because the newspaper supported Rep. Haley Stevens in the Democratic primary before El-Sayed defeated her. Founded in 1873, The Detroit News remains one of Detroit’s two major daily newspapers.
Trump Put His Weight Behind Rogers
Trump endorsed Rogers in July, giving the Republican what his campaign described as the president’s “complete and total” support.
“I’m grateful to have President Trump’s complete and total endorsement,” Rogers said in a campaign statement. “He knows that we have what it takes to win this seat and deliver real results for hard-working families.”
Trump again urged Michigan voters to support Rogers after the August primary, when Rogers and El-Sayed formally secured their parties’ nominations.
The race remains highly competitive. An Emerson College Polling/Nexstar Media survey found El-Sayed at 48% and Rogers at 46%, with the two-point difference inside the poll’s three-point credibility interval. A Fox News survey conducted a month earlier showed Rogers ahead by four points.
With Michigan hosting one of the country’s most closely watched open-seat contests, The Detroit News has now placed its institutional weight behind the Trump-backed Republican — while making El-Sayed’s deleted record a central issue for voters to consider before Election Day.
