Muslim American leaders in swing states have pledged to rally their communities against US President Joe Biden’s bid for re-election due to his steadfast backing of Israel and his refusal to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Muslim community leaders gathered on Saturday in Dearborn, Michigan, to protest Biden’s refusal to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, reiterating that the president’s stance could affect his support in crucial swing states next year.
“This #AbandonBiden 2024 conference is set against the backdrop of the upcoming 2024 presidential election and the decision to withdraw support for President Biden due to his unwillingness to call for a ceasefire and protect innocents in Palestine and Israel,” the group said in a statement.
Democrats in Michigan have warned the White House that Biden’s handling of the Israeli war on Gaza could cost him enough support within the Arab American community to sway the outcome of the 2024 presidential election.
The #AbandonBiden campaign began when Minnesota Muslim Americans demanded Biden call for a ceasefire by October 31, and has spread to Michigan, Arizona, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Florida.
Jaylani Hussein, director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said that Biden’s unwillingness to call for a ceasefire had damaged his relationship with the American-Muslim community beyond repair.
“We are not powerless as American Muslims. We are powerful. We don’t only have the money, but we have the actual votes. And we will use that vote to save this nation from itself,” Hussein said. “Families and children are being wiped out with our tax dollars,” he added. “What we are witnessing today is the tragedy upon tragedy.”
Opposition from their sizable Muslim and Arab American populations could pose a challenge to the president’s Electoral College prospects in the upcoming election.
Observers say the president could not afford to lose the support of the Arab-American community in states critical to his chances for re-election.
A recent survey revealed a significant decline in Biden’s backing among Arab Americans, dropping from a substantial majority in 2020 to just 17 percent.
It remains to be seen whether Muslim voters would turn against Biden en masse, but small shifts in support could make a difference in states Biden won by narrow margins in 2020.
This shift could have a crucial effect in states like Michigan, where Biden secured victory by 2.8 percentage points, and Arab Americans constitute 5 percent of the vote.
Among the general public, opinion polls show most Americans back an end to Israel’s war in the besieged enclave.
Muslim Americans said they did not expect former President Donald Trump to treat their community any better if re-elected, but saw denying Biden votes as their only means to shape US policy.
In recent weeks, senior officials in Washington have said they wouldn’t be drawing any red lines for Israel, which has killed thousands of Palestinian civilians during a yet-ongoing war against the Gaza Strip.
On Saturday, US vice-president Kamala Harris said that the US supports Israel’s “legitimate military objectives” in Gaza.
A recent report shows that the United States provided Israel with over 70,000 weapons — aircraft, ground vehicles, missiles and bombs — via military aid between 1950 and 2022.
So far this year, the report says that the US has provided Israel with at least 16 types of weapons. However, the type and number of weapons are not publicly known due to the US secrecy about the shipments.
Experts have said these American weapons are likely being used extensively by Israeli forces against Palestinians in Gaza.
Israel is the single largest recipient of US foreign aid since World War II.
Meanwhile, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry has said that the United States is “undoubtedly” complicit in Israel’s “war crimes” and “genocide” against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
In a post published on X late on Saturday, Nasser Kan’ani condemned Israel’s “gruesome” crimes, as the regime resumed its bombardment campaign and ground offensive against the besieged enclave after the talks for extending the 7-day temporary truce broke down on Friday.
Israel launched the war on Gaza on October 7. The Israeli aggression has so far killed around 16,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
