Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed took aim at Republican rival Mike Rogers on live television Tuesday after Rogers declined to appear for a scheduled FOX 2 debate, leaving El-Sayed to face an empty podium.
The station had kept the second podium in place in case Rogers changed his mind, but the Republican campaign ultimately stayed away.
FOX 2 said both candidates were invited on August 5, with El-Sayed accepting the following day. Rogers’ campaign did not commit and formally declined on the morning of the event after 42 days of silence.
“If former congressman Rogers changes his mind. His team is watching, we’re leaving a podium open for him, and he’s welcome to join,” moderator Roop Raj said.
El-Sayed repeatedly highlighted Rogers’ absence, contrasting it with the Republican’s recent appearance at the GOP’s midterm convention in Dallas.
“Last week, Mike Rogers took the time to go to Dallas, to give a speech at a convention held in the interest of Donald Trump, but he didn’t have the time to spend an hour with us here in Detroit,” El-Sayed said. “And it tells you everything about who he is and what his priorities are.”
He later accused Rogers of failing to show voters “the respect enough of taking your hard questions,” adding: “I have the courage enough to actually show up and have the conversation that is supposed to be the substrate of our democracy.”
Elsewhere, El-Sayed said: “I wish he was here to talk about it. I really wish he was” in response to a question about the regulation of data centers.
He also took a swipe at Rogers when a question from an unnamed Libertarian candidate was raised, quipping: “Well, I appreciate the Libertarian candidate has now participated more than the Republican candidate has in this debate.”
Afterwards, El-Sayed was even more direct, telling reporters: “It tells you who he is. He’s a coward.”
Rogers’ campaign said the decision was driven by concerns over Raj’s impartiality, arguing that the moderator had previously praised El-Sayed as “brilliant” and had been praised by online political commentator Hasan Piker, who has been widely criticized for suggesting that the U.S. deserved 9/11 as payback for previous foreign policy mistakes—a remark for which Piker has since apologized.
“Michiganders deserve to see their candidates engage in a healthy, fair debate — not one compromised by media bias,” Rogers communications director Alyssa Brouillet said. “Roop Raj has made his position clear, from praising Abdul as ‘brilliant,’ to being celebrated by Hasan Piker as ‘my GOAT,’ and bragging about his political stunts.”
Rogers said he remains committed to two other debates with El-Sayed on different networks.
Raj rejected the accusation of bias, saying: “Nothing we do at this station is trying to take a side.”
He added: “We ask tough questions about Republicans and Democrats each and every night on our political talk show, ‘The Pulse.’ But as you can imagine, the narrative is the narrative. And for whatever reason, the Rogers camp did not want to do a debate with FOX 2.”
He also defended his earlier description of El-Sayed as brilliant, saying it referred to the Democrat’s academic background and did not amount to an endorsement of his policies.
The stakes are high for El-Sayed and Rogers.
Michigan’s open Senate seat is one of the contests that could affect control of the chamber after November’s midterms. Democratic Sen. Gary Peters is vacating the seat and is not seeking re-election.
Republicans have not won a Senate election in Michigan since 1994, when Spencer Abraham captured the seat. Rogers is now attempting to break that run, having been endorsed by President Donald Trump.
But Trump’s approval rating is at a record low amid his deeply unpopular war in Iran, and polls have shown El-Sayed marginally ahead.
Trump reacted to El-Sayed’s Democratic primary victory earlier this month by calling it “great news for the Republican Party”.
