Vice President Kamala Harris’ struggling campaign has suffered yet another blow, this time from a vocal member of her own party. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), a member of the congressional progressive coalition known as “The Squad,” announced that she will not be endorsing Harris, a decision that could have significant electoral consequences, as Michigan is seen as a crucial swing state for the Harris-Walz Campaign.
Tlaib has consistently accused the Biden-Harris Administration of supporting “genocide” by providing military aid to Israel amid its conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. During the Democratic Primary earlier this year, Tlaib was instrumental in organizing an “uncommitted” campaign among the state’s substantial Muslim community, urging participants to vote against President Biden unless he supported a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. “Mr. President, the American people are not with you on this one,” Tlaib said in a November 2023 video statement. “We will remember in 2024.”
Tlaib has maintained her stance long after President Biden was replaced by Harris, and on Friday, she chose not to endorse Harris during a United Auto Workers union rally, as reported by the Detroit News. Instead, Tlaib focused on get-out-the-vote efforts and did not mention Harris, in contrast to UAW President Shawn Fain and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), both of whom enthusiastically endorsed the vice president at the rally.
“Don’t underestimate the power you all have,” Tlaib said at the rally. “More than those ads, those lawn signs, those billboards, you all have more power to turn out people that understand we’ve got to fight back against corporate greed in our country . . . We’ve got to make sure that the nonpartisan part of the ballot gets filled in.”
Former President Donald Trump has sought to leverage the Biden-Harris Administration’s low approval ratings among Michigan’s significant Muslim community. He has garnered endorsements from several Muslim leaders, including Democrats, and plans to visit Dearborn, the state’s Arab-majority city, for one of his final campaign rallies.