Trump Engages Divided Arab-American Electorate in Crucial Michigan

On a bright, clear day in the United States’ largest city with an Arab majority, dozens of individuals gathered outside the Great Commoner cafe, hoping to see Donald Trump. “What we want is peace,” Trump communicated to a gathering of Arab-American business leaders inside the Dearborn, Michigan, establishment, just days before the presidential election. However, a nearby assembly of pro- and anti-Trump voters, exchanging shouts, underscored the profound division within the Michigan community regarding the selection of the most suitable American president to address the escalating conflict in the Middle East. The Republican’s visit to Dearborn on Friday, an area historically leaning Democratic, represents the culmination of his efforts to appeal to the more than 200,000 Arab-Americans residing in Michigan, a state vital for electoral victory. This outreach could influence a closely contested race between Trump and Kamala Harris. In 2016, Hillary Clinton lost Michigan to Trump by a mere 10,000 votes, while Biden reclaimed the state in 2020 with a 150,000-vote margin. Through billboards along Michigan highways and during his appearances, the Trump campaign asserts his stance “for peace” in the Middle East, simultaneously portraying Harris as pro-Israel. This message has resonated with some. Trump secured endorsements from the mayors of Dearborn Heights and Hamtramck, a small Muslim-majority city near Detroit, although Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud stated on Friday that he declined a meeting with the former president. This trend concerns Abbas Alawieh, a prominent figure in the Uncommitted movement—a coalition protesting US support for Israel—who has pledged his support for Harris despite his group’s refusal to endorse her. “I’ve been hearing … a lot more of the feeling that this is a binary choice, and some voters feeling like maybe we should just vote for Donald Trump because he’s saying he’s a pro-peace candidate,” Mr Alawieh informed the BBC at Haraz Cafe in Dearborn on Friday. Conversely, the Harris campaign affirmed that the vice-president has consistently supported and continues to support the “diverse Muslim community” in the US. “The Vice President is committed to work to earn every vote, unite our country, and to be a President for all Americans,” stated Nasrina Bargzie, the campaign director for Muslim and Arab American Outreach. She further added that Harris would ensure the community could “live free from the hateful policies of the Trump administration.” Despite dissatisfaction with the Biden-Harris administration’s approach to the conflict, several community leaders conveyed to the BBC their belief that Trump does not present a viable solution either. “We’re not naive about what he means for our community,” remarked Rexhinaldo Nazarko, executive director of the American Muslim Engagement and Empowerment Network, a Michigan Muslim advocacy organization. He referenced Trump’s “Muslim ban,” his 2017 executive order prohibiting travelers from predominantly Muslim nations. Nevertheless, Mr Nazarko and other leaders indicated that conveying their displeasure regarding the Biden-Harris administration’s pro-Israel policies holds greater significance than the outcome of the White House race. They have advocated for votes for third-party candidates instead of abstaining from the election. This sentiment was articulated by Hassan Abdel Salam, a leader of the Abandon Harris campaign and a former Democrat, to a crowded room gathered for prayer at the American Muslim Center in Dearborn on Friday. “Our intention is to show that we are punishing someone, a leader who for a year we protested and we gave ultimata, warnings,” he declared. “Our belief now, even despite having lived under Trump, a truly vile person, has been that we now see that there is no lesser evil.” Muslim leaders and political analysts acknowledge that the Harris campaign has opted to prioritize securing moderate voters and boosting turnout in traditionally Democratic strongholds such as Detroit, rather than actively seeking the support of Muslims and Arab-Americans. The campaign is also apprehensive about alienating pro-Israel Jewish voters and other Democrats who are more inclined to cast their ballots, according to Saeed Khan, a professor at Wayne State University. Mr Khan suggested that many voters contemplating supporting third-party candidates would likely ultimately vote for Harris to prevent Trump from winning office. This is a strategic consideration that Wael Alzayat, CEO of the Muslim voter outreach organization Emgage, hopes Michigan voters, in general, will adopt. “A vote for third-party is a vote for Trump, which will bring about the worst outcome,” he asserted. “Trump is a brick wall.” Mohammed Hassan, a member of Hamtramck’s entirely Muslim city council, expressed his belief that the majority of his 25,000-strong Bangladeshi Muslim community would vote for Harris, with the remainder supporting Trump. However, he noted that not all Muslims share the same view. “Yemeni Muslims in the same city may go 50-50 between Trump and Harris,” he stated. Yet, several imams of Yemeni descent have endorsed Trump, as has Hamtramck’s Yemeni Mayor Amer Ghalib. No significant election polling has been conducted among Michigan’s Bangladeshi and Yemeni communities. Many Arab Americans and Muslims desire a more “balanced narrative” concerning the conflict, including greater empathy for the suffering of Gazans and Lebanese, Mr Khan observed. “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 commented. Over 43,000 individuals have been killed in Gaza since Israel initiated a campaign to dismantle Hamas following the group’s October 2023 assault, as reported by the Hamas-run health ministry. Approximately 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage during the attack. None of these factors simplify the decision to back Harris, according to Mr Alawieh, the Uncommitted leader. Her campaign erred by not shifting its stance on Israel, which could also cost her support from young Democratic voters or voters of color, he indicated. “It feels to me like the Harris campaign here in Michigan left a lot of votes on the table,” Mr Alawieh remarked. “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.’”