Harris vows at Michigan rally to 'do everything in my power to end war in Gaza' | US elections 2024

Kamala Harris vowed to “do everything in my power to end the war in Gaza” at her final rally Sunday in Michigan, as she sought to appeal to the country's large Arab American and Muslim American populations two days before the election to appeal to the state.

Michigan is home to about 240,000 registered Muslim voters, the majority of whom voted for Biden in 2020, helping him to a narrow victory over Donald Trump. But Arab Americans and Muslim Americans in the state have expressed dissatisfaction with the vice president's stance on Israel's war on Gaza, and polls suggest those voters are gravitating toward Green Party candidate Jill Stein.

With Harris and the former president essentially tied in Michigan, a decline in vote totals could be crucial for both, and Harris made a clear appeal at the start of her speech.

“We are joined today by leaders of the Arab American community, which has deep and proud roots here in Michigan, and I want to say that this year has been difficult given the level of death and destruction in Gaza and given the civilian casualties and displacement. “in Lebanon,” Harris said.

“It is devastating, and as president I will do everything in my power to end the war in Gaza, bring the hostages home, end the suffering in Gaza, ensure Israel's security and ensure that the Palestinian People can exercise their right to dignity, freedom, security and self-determination.”

In her speech on the campus of Michigan State University, Harris reiterated her campaign promise to “end a decade of politics marked by fear and division.” Harris did not mention Trump by name in East Lansing as she delivered a speech that set a hopeful tone for the future.

“America is ready for a new beginning, ready for a new path forward in which we see our fellow Americans not as enemies but as neighbors,” she said.

“We are ready for a president who knows that the true measure of a leader comes not from who you knock down, but from who you lift up.”

Harris made her fourth stop of the day in Michigan after previously speaking at a church in Detroit and stopping by a barbershop in Pontiac. The state is key to their chances of success, but the result is likely to be close. Trump won Michigan by about 10,000 votes in 2016 as he tore down the Democrats' “blue wall,” and Biden also won the state by a narrow margin in 2020. Trump is holding his final campaign rally in Michigan on Monday evening, but Harris is already defiant.

“We have to finish strong. So we still have a lot of work to do in the next two days, but one thing is this: we like hard work. Hard work is good work. Hard work is joyful work,” she said.

“And make no mistake, we will win.”

There was a loud atmosphere at the rally, Harris' final stop in Michigan before Tuesday's vote. She had to pause again and again to hear loud chants of “Kamala, Kamala” from a diverse crowd that seemed excited to vote for her

“I feel more energized and excited about this election than ever before,” said Latonya Demps, 40, a small business owner and Michigan State graduate.

“I am very pleased to vote for Harris. As a woman, she speaks for my rights and the rights of women that we have fought for for a very, very long time: the right to choose, the right to justice and access, also freedom for all of us in terms of climate change What our economy, the As far as the type of neighbors we want to have, the families we want to raise, I think it represents the values ​​that are really important to me.”

This week, Democrats have struggled to counter Stein's gains among Arab-American and Muslim-American voters in Michigan, with the Democratic National Committee running a series of ads on Instagram and YouTube to discourage people from voting for Stein and Cornel West is running as an independent and is also a critic of Israel.

The ads highlight Trump's recent comments that he likes Stein “a lot” because: “She accepts 100% of (Democrats). ” The pro-Democrat organization MoveOn also ran a “seven-figure” advertising campaign this week, according to According to its own statements, it is intended to appeal to people who have not yet decided on a candidate, as well as “curious third-party voters”.

Polls on this topic have produced inconsistent results. Last week, a national poll of Arab Americans conducted by the Arab News Research and Studies Unit found 43% supported Trump, compared to 41% for Harris, and 4% supported Stein, while a Council on American poll of Muslims Americans found that 43% support Trump. “Islamic Relations of American Muslims” found that 42.3% plan to vote for Stein, 41% for Harris and 9.8% for Trump.

Despite this uncertainty, Harris supporters departed happily on Sunday evening.

“She will be the first black female president we have. She will actually fight for our rights. She fights for women's reproductive rights, she also fights for the middle class, for entrepreneurs and business owners like me,” said Zay Worthey, 19.

Worthey said he was “100%” confident that Harris would win the White House on Tuesday.

“Because she has something that Donald Trump doesn’t have: community,” Worthey said.

“She really works and fights for the people of America, and Donald Trump only works for the people of the rich.”