Haley Stevens lost her primary race to become the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in Michigan. It was a very close race, and she lost by a percentage point, a mere 15,000 votes. It was a bitterly fought race with the eventual winner, Dr. Abdul El-Sayeed.
Haley Stevens may have lost, but she is not a loser. Two days after her defeat, she was on CBS News endorsing El-Sayeed and urging her supporters to support him and the Democratic ticket.
Stevens, who represents a swing district in Michigan, will forfeit her seat, but she has given us a good lesson in democracy. In our contentious times, contested election results have become more common. The concept of acknowledging a loss too often is forgotten in favor of disputing results. Doing this erodes the heart of democracy. Winners win, and losers admit defeat. That is the American way.
So Stevens’ concession and her willingness to endorse her opponent is welcome. It is a lesson in grace. When you lose fairly, you admit it and move on. Stevens is taking it one step further by working to elect her rival.
What we can take from Stevens’ approach are four things:
One, when you lose, admit it.
Two, thank those who support you and be gracious to those who did not.
Three, heed your purpose and continue to stand tall for your values.
Four, stay positive.
Politics is a mean business, and more and more it has become an arena where personal and family safety can be at risk. So when we see candidates admit defeat and move toward unity, they demonstrate that partisanship has its limits, but the greater good knows no bounds.