Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), who critics branded a “traitor” after she endorsed Republican Mike Rogers two days before the election, was “practically in hiding” when she returned to the Capitol on Monday, The Washington Sun reported. The Sun also reported where she spent Monday’s votes: the Republican cloakroom.
Stevens has kept a low profile since she was spotted voting on Election Day alongside her mother, according to the Sun. Last week she pulled out of a post-election panel, and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), who filled in for her, ribbed her.
Stevens had criticized Democrat Abdul El-Sayed’s ties to streamer Hasan Piker and an El-Sayed ad featuring Tucker Carlson before backing Rogers. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called the endorsement a “despicable betrayal,” and several of her staffers resigned. El-Sayed went on to beat Rogers.
Reporters didn’t see Stevens when the House returned Monday for the first time since the midterms, but House clerk records show she cast two votes that day.
“It turns out Stevens spent Monday’s vote series in the Republican cloakroom just off of the House floor,” the Sun reported.
Each party has its own cloakroom, a private lounge off the House floor where members make calls and gather between votes. Reporters and the public aren’t allowed in, and lawmakers rarely venture into the other party’s.
Where else Stevens spent the day remained unclear. Sun reporters said they stopped by her office three times Monday and found it locked, with no answer to their knocks. A staffer in a nearby office said they had seen the door ajar that morning. Outside sat a large wooden box labeled “FRAGILE,” one side open, the Sun reported. It “sat empty outside the door.”
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