A quick look at battleground state polling for the November presidential election will tell you that the race in those states is a virtual dead heat. Both candidates will need every vote they can get to win those states. Former President Donald Trump might have to work harder in traditionally blue states like Wisconsin and Michigan to win votes. But Vice President Kamala Harris has her own problems in Michigan with the Arab-American community that might just cost her some votes.
The “Uncommitted” movement in Michigan that began during the Michigan Democrat primary to protest the Biden-Harris administration’s conducting of the Israel-Hamas war is not all that open to backing Kamala Harris in November. Recently, the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee conference was held in Dearborn. The main topic of conversation turned to whether the Arab-American community would support Harris, and the general feeling was that they would not. It was Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who the crowd seemed to be the most enthusiastic about. Stein had spoken at the conference the night before.
The Uncommitted movement was started in Michigan by the “Listen to Michigan” campaign. It quickly became a problem for Joe Biden when the initial goal of the movement was to get 10,000 voters to voice their displeasure at Biden, but that goal was smashed as not just Muslims but other Arab-Americans, younger voters, and far-left progressives joined in, and 10,000 turned into 100,000 voters. In Dearborn alone, the city with the largest Muslim population in the country, Biden lost to the Uncommitted voters 57 percent to 40 percent.
Joe Biden is no longer at the top of the Democrat ticket, so his problem with Uncommitted voters in Michigan has quickly become Kamala Harris’ problem. The Uncommitted movement has spread to other crucial swing states like Wisconsin, Minnesota, and the all-important Pennsylvania. She co-owns the failure of the Biden-Harris administration to negotiate a cease-fire and the U.S. sending roughly $26 billion in defense aid to Israel in April. But Harris’ answers during her CNN interview with Dana Bash are also not doing her any favors with the Arab and Muslim-American communities in Michigan.
Kamala Harris did not answer whether or not the U.S. would withhold more weapons shipments to Israel. She stated:
“No, we have to get a deal done. I remain committed — since I’ve been on October 8 — to what we must do to work toward a two-state solution where Israel is secure and, in equal measure, the Palestinians have security, self-determination, and dignity.”
Can the Uncommitted movement sway enough votes in swing states in the general election? In Minnesota, where Harris’ Vice Presidential nominee, Tim Walz, is governor, she is ahead by 5.4 points; they likely would not, even though 46,000 Minnesotans voted uncommitted on Super Tuesday. But in Wisconsin, where she is only up by 1.2 points, and Pennsylvania, where she is only up by one-tenth of a percent, it might be a tempting possibility. While there might not be the concentration of Arab-American and Muslim voters that there is in Michigan, where the numbers are equally close at just 0.7 points, it could be just enough to sway the younger and more progressive voters who might view the Biden-Harris administration as only making concessions to Israel.
Kamala Harris may be playing a game of beat-the-clock with the Uncommitted movement. The group had set a deadline of September 15 that they wanted Harris to meet with Palestinian families to discuss an end to the conflict. It is unknown if that deadline has been met. One thing is certain: the Uncommitted movement is gaining steam, and Kamala Harris may be forced to listen before November.
