Harris’s Presidential Bid Hits Snag as Key Pro-Palestinian Group Withdraws Endorsement

Not all leftists are fully backing Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. While mainstream media outlets have frequently highlighted the positive statements from figures like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) regarding the vice president, they have largely overlooked a significant development: the withdrawal of support from a prominent anti-Israel organization.

The Uncommitted National Movement, a pro-Palestinian group advocating for peace with Hamas, emphasized on X the announcement made by a group of Muslim women who have pulled their endorsement of the Harris-Walz ticket.

Although Muslim Women for Harris-Walz is not officially affiliated with the campaign, they previously expressed hope that the Democratic Party would invite a Palestinian speaker to address the Democratic National Convention, which is now being attended by many protestors in Chicago.

The organization declared its decision to disband after learning that the Democratic Party had rejected their proposal.

“We cannot in good conscience continue Muslim Women for Harris-Walz, in light of this new information from the Uncommitted movement, that VP Harris’s team declined their request to have a Palestinian American speaker take the stage at the DNC,” the statement on X read. “The family of the Israeli Hostage that was on the stage tonight has shown more empathy toward Palestinian Americans and Palestinians than our own candidate or the DNC has.

This sends a terrible message to Democrats. Palestinians have the right to speak about Palestine. We pray that the DNC and VP Harris’s team make the right decision before this convention is over. For the sake of each of us.”

This decision is a setback for Harris, who had aimed to skillfully reunite a fracturing alliance of progressive Jews and pro-Palestinians that has long existed within the Democratic Party. The Hamas attack on October 7th, which resulted in the deaths of 1,400 Jews and the capture of several hundred people, has reignited debates over the appropriate timing and context for supporting the Palestinian cause in light of the actions of this terrorist organization. The Israeli retaliatory strikes, which have caused the deaths of thousands of Gazans, have sparked a wave of anti-Israel protests on college campuses throughout the year and outside the Democratic National Convention this week.

During the Democratic state primary elections, the Uncommitted campaign drew up to 15% of Democratic voters who opted not to nominate President Joe Biden for a second term in certain areas. This protest vote revealed deep dissatisfaction among younger, more progressive voters with his continued support for arming Israel in its conflict.

After a chaotic first day of protests, during which demonstrators forcibly breached a gate and entered secure zones, the DNC protestors maintained a largely nonviolent stance by the third evening. Nevertheless, their impact on the ticket has been felt; observers noted that Pennsylvania Governor Joshua Shapiro, a devout Jew, was likely passed over as a potential running mate due to concerns that his selection would provoke further hostility from pro-Palestinian factions.