It's a mystery. We're told Abdul El-Sayed is up in the polls. And perhaps that really does reflect the real state of the race. 

But if so, he's doing that despite the fact that an awful lot of Democrats are so disgusted by him that they are endorsing Mike Rogers. 

It's a staple in politics to trot out "Democrats for Republican X" or "Republicans for Democrat X," and you should usually dismiss those groups as publicity stunts. Some party switchers are real, but for the most part it's calling  Tim Miller or Bill Kristol Republicans despite their hating Republicans with every bone in their bodies. 

But in the case of Abdul El-Sayed, the people crossing the party line are genuine about it, and really are lifelong Democrats who would never consider voting for a Republican unless they felt driven to under extraordinary circumstances. They see Abdul El-Sayed's election as just such a circumstance. 

Haley Stevens' fiancé says he's voting for Mike Rogers for Senate

Jason Turkish, the Democratic fiancé of former Sen. candidate Haley Stevens, told the paper he'll vote for Republican Mike Rogers, saying three months of watching convinced him Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is an antisemite who has acted recklessly toward Jewish community safety. He called it "putting country before party."

The most prominent defector to Rogers is Jason Turkish, Haley Stevens' fiancé, who openly disdains El-Sayed and argues that the guy is just scary. Unlike many Democrats who can't stomach El-Sayed's Islamism and, at least for a few, his blatant lies, he isn't leaving the ballot blank. He's hoping to be one of the people who takes him down. 

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And then there is Elissa Slotkin and Haley Stevens' fiancé chair, who spends his time raising big money for Democrat candidates and equally find El-Sayed too much to bear. It takes a lot of guts to come out for a Republican when your brand and political connections all depend on being a loyal Democrat. 

That's not a "principle over party" virtue signal; it's putting real money on the table in a risky bet. Perhaps it's even a political kamikaze run. 

Then there are the Democrats whose opposition to El-Sayed has led them to come out against him, but with a bit less fervor. People who would probably have voted for Jay Jones in Virginia are going to leave the ballot blank in their own Senate race. 

Haley Stevens hasn't SAID she will vote against him — her whole career has been as a professional Democrat — but she gave El-Sayed what amounts to an anti-endorsement. 

Others are quieter about their opposition, but opposed nonetheless. They won't say what they think in public, but they'll go into the voting booth, unlikely to fill in the oval for a man they find morally repulsive. Jay Jones used extreme rhetoric, kind of in private. You can dismiss it as blowing off steam; El-Sayed is running as a quasi-Islamist, and knows his support depends upon people who root against America. 

Will any of this doom El-Sayed? Who knows? But if the failure of the polls in the primary tells you anything, it's that the polls on the guy are totally untrustworthy. He was in line to win in a landslide, we were told, but wound up barely squeaking by to secure the nomination. 

No doubt the establishment is disconsolate that he is the candidate. In the current political environment, Michigan was almost a sure thing with any other candidate. Now it is a toss-up, and even if he wins, he will be a millstone around their necks.