Anti-Biden Effort Grows Among American Muslims
A political movement among American Muslims to abandon President Joe Biden has grown significantly in recent months, which could have a major impact on the November election between him and former President Donald Trump. The effort came as the former president is gaining among a series of demographic groups according to recent polls.
A group called ‘Abandon Biden’ is planning to convince Muslim American voters in nine states to stop the president’s chances of reelection. The effort is led by a Muslim-American in Minnesota, who cites the current conflict in the Middle East.
The leader, Abdel Salam said that ““the big gift that would come out of punishing the president is that an entire party [and] becomes a pro-Palestinian party against the occupation and will begin to look for equity much more aggressively than we have in the past,”
Support for Biden has declined significantly among Muslim Americans and Arab Americans since the start of the current war in the Middle East in October.
The current movement followed an earlier effort by Muslim American Democratic Party leaders to have followers vote for ‘Uncommitted’ rather than Biden in the presidential primary. The number of ‘Uncommitted’ votes in the Michigan Democratic Party presidential primary exceeded the initial goal set by the organizers.
Furthermore, any significant shift in the support of Muslim Americans away from Biden could affect several states. This includes states with small but significant Muslim American populations such as Michigan and Minnesota.
Biden’s campaign has struggled in Michigan, which has seen a number of pro-Palestine protests since November. An effort by the Biden 2024 campaign to reach out to Muslim leaders was rebuffed.
It is not clear whether or not Muslim Americans will ultimately vote for Trump. However, considering the close margin in Michigan in 2020, it is possible that if the demographic either stays home or votes for independent candidates that Biden’s campaign may be in trouble.
#NEW General Election Poll – Minnesota
🔴 Trump 40%
🔵 Biden 40%McLaughlin (R) #277 – 600 LV pic.twitter.com/jHMPIT00rW
— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) May 7, 2024
In the electoral college, Biden would likely need to win Minnesota and Michigan in order to get the 270 electoral votes needed to win another term.
