Warren defies Schumer as Dem civil war explodes over must-win Senate race

There’s a battle to shape the Democratic Party this fall, and two top Senate Democrats are taking different paths in their bids to put their mark on the process.Sen.Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., endorsed Abdul El-Sayed in the duel for the Democratic Senate nomination in Michigan.

It’s a break from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who is backing Rep.Haley Stevens, D-Mich.The diverging endorsements are emblematic of the fight going on behind the scenes and publicly in the Democratic Party as the old guard fights to stand its ground, while a progressive surge threatens to completely overtake the party.DEMOCRATS' CIVIL WAR HEADS TO MICHIGAN WHERE PROGRESSIVES FACE BIGGEST TEST YET IN HIGH-STAKES SENATE SHOWDOWNSenate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen.

Elizabeth Warren conduct a roundtable on housing costs in Washington, D.C., on Jan.7, 2026.

(Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)For example, Warren backed former Maine Senate Democratic nominee Graham Platner, while Schumer had courted and pushed Maine Gov.Janet Mills to get into the race.And hours after Sen.

Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep.Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., stumped for El-Sayed, Warren jumped into the fray.In her endorsement video for El-Sayed on Monday, she noted that he was "the only candidate in this race not taking corporate money, and he's fighting to get money out of politics altogether."MICHIGAN DEMOCRAT MALLORY MCMORROW DROPS OUT OF SENATE RACE WEEKS BEFORE PRIMARY"And make no mistake," Warren said.

"Abdul is the only candidate in this race who can build the grassroots movement needed to win in November.More money in your pocket, to get money out of politics and deliver ‘Medicare-for-all.’ Michigan, let's get this done."Notably, Warren had previously endorsed Michigan state Sen.

Mallory McMorrow, who dropped out of the race earlier this month.McMorrow was opposed to "Medicare-for-all," a key policy push of Warren’s.And El-Sayed has made headlines, like Platner, fo...