Muslims urged to see past Trump and Harris, focus on 500,000 other choices

Virginia — They sat close, leaning in, drawn by Imam Naeem Mohammad Baig's words, waiting for the next phrase to fill the room.

Dressed in a grey suit and white shirt, the imam's message was simple, yet it cut through the crowd: "We have not endorsed either Harris or Trump. But you must vote."

Baig's final push to fence-sitters or undecided Muslim voters on the last Friday before the US elections came during his sermon at Dar Al Hijrah Islamic Center, in Falls Church, Virginia, a state that heavily leans towards the Democratic Party, which has won the last four presidential elections here.

Muslim Americans have been warned of "self-sabotage" if they vote for Republican Donald Trump. They have been told to "vote with conscience" and oppose Democrat Kamala Harris for her Gaza war stance. They have also been told to shun both and stay "uncommitted."

With US ally Israel involved in two wars in the Middle East — against Palestine and Lebanon — here in America, thousands of miles away from Ground Zero, choosing a president has never been tougher for Muslims, especially Arab Americans who have seen their relatives tortured, massacred, and uprooted.

The Israeli genocidal war has left more than 44,000 Palestinians dead, over 110,000 wounded, 10,000 buried under the weight of tonnes of steel and concrete of bombed homes, and displaced almost the entire 2.4 million population. And it's only a conservative estimate, as experts fear the death toll to be beyond 200,000.

"Let us start thinking, how can I make a difference locally," Baig told the worshippers, trying to steer them away from both presidential candidates.

Instead of presidential candidates, and because of the difficult choices involved, he told the crowd to participate and focus on some 500,000 local elections and politicians who run the states, cities, towns, counties, school boards, and special districts.

The imam was referring to more than 519,000 politicians who run America's 50 states. Of these, some 500,300 (96 per cent) are local elected officials, some 18,700 (3.6 per cent) are state politicians, and just 537 are federal politicians (0.1 per cent).

"Half a million seats are up for elections at different times in America… My brothers and sisters, we are not at the level with money or with the numbers that we can make a bigger change at the bigger level, but we have to start low, start small," he insisted before shifting his sermon to two nearby churches that allow free parking on Fridays for Muslim worshippers but may now end the agreement.

'I will not vote at all'

As the worshippers began to disperse, Jamal, an Uber driver who had come with his daughter, spoke about life under ex-President Trump's rule and the past four years under President Joe Biden's Democratic Party.

"I am not going to vote for Trump or Harris. I will not vote at all. They have lost my trust," the Muslim American in his late forties told TRT World.

Jamal has Ethiopian roots and said he has witnessed some of his friends and relatives suffer from what became notorious as Trump's "Muslim Ban."

In 2017, Trump signed an executive order banning people from six Muslim-majority countries from entering the US, and slamming the door on refugees and asylum-seekers.

Today Trump's Muslim allies say the Republican leader "has not mentioned anything about the Muslim ban during his entire campaign, right now."

"Some of my relatives arriving from outside remained stranded at the US airports despite valid visas and even green cards," said Jamal, who in 2020 deposited a "punishment vote" against Trump and in favour of Biden.

Now "disappointed" by both Biden and Harris, Jamal said he will only participate in local elections, especially for school boards.

For months, Harris and Biden have been accused of facilitating Israel's war on Gaza with a blind eye on the mounting Palestinian death toll.

Their critics say the administration's unrestrained military, financial, and diplomatic support of Tel Aviv's far-right politicians, including at least $18 billion since the start of the war, makes the administration complicit.

No doubt Harris has called for a ceasefire in Gaza, a two-state solution to one of the world's longest ongoing conflicts, and dignity for Palestinians, but she has also been lambasted over her repeated refusals to stop arms supply to Israel.

There are some 3.5 million Muslims in the US and in the swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, eligible Muslim voters can tip the balance.

Trump and Harris both have Muslim allies and have been wooing Muslim voters across all battleground states.

'Gender ideology'

Fahad Ahmed, a middle-aged Arab American of Yemeni descent, wondered in a corner of the mosque if his "protest vote" for Trump and against Harris in Virginia state really matters, but was quick to tell a fellow worshipper, who will be voting in Michigan state, to choose Jill Stein instead of Democrats.

The Green Party candidate has gained immense support among disillusioned and angry Muslim voters.

"Let's vote intelligently," said Ahmed, who is not only worried about the Gaza and Lebanon wars but has found a common cause with Republicans, who, he said, are trying to confront "gender ideology" and "indoctrination" of students by school boards.

"Unlike Democrats, Republicans are not insensitive to our religious beliefs and values," he said, adding that while Harris has refused to meet or entertain Muslim community leaders, Trump is leaving no stone unturned in his Muslim outreach efforts.

Analysts say the Democrats may be taking a huge gamble by ignoring the Muslim "protest vote."

"I just don't think they understand how important losing this vote can be," John Zogby, who has spent the past 40 years as one of the most accurate pollsters in the world, told TRT World.

"I think they know the numbers but it is baked into the cake that they cannot risk losing the Jewish vote. Thus, they continue to insult Arab Americans."