Trump courts divided Arab-American voters in must-win Michigan

Muslim leaders and political experts acknowledge that the Harris campaign has decided to focus more on securing moderate voters and improving turnout in traditionally Democratic areas like Detroit, rather than courting Muslims and Arab-Americans.

The campaign also is concerned about losing support from pro-Israel Jewish voters and other Democrats more likely to cast a ballot, said Saeed Khan, a Wayne State University professor.

Mr Khan said many voters who considered casting a ballot for third-party candidates, likely will end up voting for Harris to keep Trump out of office.

It’s a calculation Wael Alzayat, CEO of Muslim voter outreach group Emgage, hopes Michigan voters, in general, will make.

“A vote for third-party is a vote for Trump, which will bring about the worst outcome,” he said. “Trump is a brick wall.”

Mohammad Hassan, a member of Hamtramck’s fully Muslim city council, said 80 percent of his 25,000-strong Bangladeshi Muslim community is voting for Harris, while the rest could go for Trump.

But, he said, all Muslims don’t necessarily agree.

“Yemeni Muslims in the same city may go 50-50 between Trump and Harris,” he said.

The anger within the Arab-Muslim community over Gaza is real, Mr Hassan said, but unlike the Bangladeshi community, they do not vote in big numbers. “So even if their vote doesn’t go to Harris, it’s unlikely to go to Trump.”

Many Arab Americans and Muslims crave a more “balanced narrative” about the war, including more empathy for the suffering of Gazans and Lebanese, Mr Khan said.

“For Harris to talk about 100 some-odd [Israeli] hostages, and not mention 45,000 to 50,000 Gazans killed, to not consider that there was an impact on American citizens, families and lives, that I think was seen as egregious,” he said.

Over 43,000 people have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas after the group’s October 2023 attack, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. About 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage in the attack.

None of this makes the decision to support Harris easy, said Mr Alawieh, the Uncommitted leader.

Her campaign made a mistake by not budging on Israel, which also may cost her support from Democratic young voters or voters of colour, he said.

“It feels to me like the Harris campaign here in Michigan left a lot of votes on the table,” Mr Alawieh said. “I hope they’re doing that as part of some calculation that she wins. I hope that after this election, we don’t look back at her campaign and say ‘Maybe we shouldn’t have left those votes on the table.’”