Over the past year, Mehdi Hasan He has established himself as one of the most influential journalists in the progressive sphere of the United States thanks to his political channel Zeteo. Over the past year, Hasan, a former contributor to the MSNBC pay network, has also represented the voice of hundreds of thousands of Arab-Americans outraged by the administration’s support. Biden to the Israeli military campaigns in Gaza, described and denounced daily as a “genocide”.
Hasan’s case is paradigmatic because, after months of condemnation by Democrats, he made a decision: to vote for the Democratic candidate, Kamala HarrisBiden’s vice president, despite everything. And not only that: he also encouraged his audience to follow his example. Harris is, according to him, “the better of two evils”.
Hasan’s approach may seem obvious. The Muslim community is traditionally Democratic in the United States. But many feel betrayed by certain leaders who understand themselves to be complicit in the Palestinian tragedy. And some interventions during party meetings, like this one from the former president Bill Clinton in Michigan – “I understand that many think too many Palestinians are dead, but…” – are not helping things improve.
Measurement of support for candidates.
Art EE
There are at least two worrying polls for the Harris campaign, specifically in the closest elections in decades, with both candidates playing for victory by a handful of votes. A week ago, we learned about the work of Arab News Research and Studies in collaboration with YouGov. Researchers found that 45% of Arab Americans support Donald Trump for Harris’ 43%, they even found 4% who would lean towards an independent candidate: the environmentalist Jill Steinopenly pro-Palestinian.
As many as 87% of those surveyed said they would vote, and 80% said their vote would be important to the fate of the White House. Interestingly, in turn, 39% think it is “more likely” that Trump will resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict than the 33% who are betting on Harris.
Middle East Survey.
Art EE
There are a few issues to note when analyzing analytics charts. 40% identify as Democrats and only 28% as Republicans. In the last election, 43% voted for Biden and 34% for Trump. Two in ten therefore opted for abstention, and it is this option that many pro-Palestinian activists are promoting on social networks through initiatives such as Abandon Harris.
Now, if we look at the Arab American Institute survey from early October, we see a similar trend. Harris, according to his data, enjoys the same support in the community as Trump, or even slightly less: 41% and 42%, respectively. Only 63% of Arab Americans confirm they will votewhich is striking when, during the last elections, the participation percentage was around 80%. This is the same data from Muslims who assume Gaza will weigh in their final decision. In fact, there is only one subject that worries them the most: jobs and the economy.
“We’ve been surveying Arab American voters for 30 years,” said James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute, introducing the report. “We have never witnessed an effect comparable to that of the war in Gaza on voters. The genocide affected all subgroups of the community. »
It will be interesting to see the impact of Biden’s loyalty to Netanyahu in the most contested spaces: in Michigan, in particular. It is one of seven states contesting between Democrats and Republicans, and in cities like Dearborn or Detroit, the Lebanese, Iraqi and Palestinian communities can make a difference if the most widespread decision is not the one promoted by influential actors like Mehdi Hassan. The margins of difference between Trump and Harris are so narrow that demobilizing any group will result in the loss of thousands of potentially decisive votes, especially for Democrats.
