Green Party candidate Jill Stein Palestinian recruits Americans to run for vice president as left-wing presidential candidate seeks to capitalize on public disillusionment with Democrats’ support for Israel during war in Gaza.
Two potential candidates told NBC News on Friday that they have had many conversations with Stein about the job. A spokeswoman for a third potential candidate, Democratic Mayor Abdullah Hammoud of Dearborn, Michigan, confirmed that Stein had asked him if he was willing to consider the case before Hammoud got it. too young to be constitutional.
Stein does plans to announce his running mate next Friday. It is not clear who he chose or whether he made up his mind. The Stein campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“It’s an honor to be considered for a position and something that I think seriously about and weigh heavily,” said Abed Ayoub, executive director of the Washington-based Arab-American Committee Against Discrimination, which calls itself the largest Arab American nation. The organization in the US is “looking for someone who really understands and articulates what our community feels.”
Arab and Muslim voters tend to vote Democratic. But President Joe Biden’s continued support for Israel left many Arab and Muslim voters speechlessSeveral war zones, especially Michigan, which make up significant parts.
“This is not Jill Stein coming to steal votes, quote. He is coming to gather votes,” Ayoub said. “Is this a politically smart thing to do? It’s obvious.”
Ayoub, who said he had “many conversations” with Stein about joining his ticket, said his campaign shows the growing strength of the community. It became more politically organized after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israeli civilians and the subsequent Israeli military response.
Vice President Kamala Harris is hoping to win many of them back and has taken a tougher rhetorical line against Israel, but her policy toward Israel so far appears to be identical to Biden’s.
ADC published survey among members At the end of last month, Stein was leading with 45% support, while Harris had the support of just 27% of members — an improvement from Biden’s 7% support in a May poll.
Ayoub praised Harris’ choice of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat who has good relations with Muslim and Arab voters in his state, as his vice-presidential candidate. But Ayoub he said he was far from selling.
“He was the right choice and it leaves a little bit of a crack in the door for the badge, but it’s going to take a lot more work,” he said.
Meanwhile, Amer ZahrThe Palestinian-American comedian and activist said he’s also talked to Stein about joining her ticket — and is willing to vote for him, despite the reshuffled Democratic ticket.
“I’m honored to be considered and I think it’s important for the Stein campaign to reach out directly to Palestinian Americans and Arab Americans, especially in Michigan,” Zahr said. “It shows that, unlike the Harris campaign, he is serious about addressing the core issues of this campaign.”
Zahr said he was open to Harris at first, but “really disrespectfully” later turned on him. Pro-Palestinian protestors shut down who interrupted him at a recent event as well Harris announced through his assistant that he would do so does not support an arms embargo over Israel.
“He could have said, ‘I hear you, we’re going to fix this, and if you want it to get better, elect me over Donald Trump,'” Zahr said. “But instead he suggested we wanted to help get Trump elected … as if we owed him something and he didn’t owe us.”
Democrats worry that third-party efforts like Stein’s will help re-elect Trump by dividing the vote of people who dislike the former president.
Stein and another leftist third party candidate Cornel Westa renowned professor and civil rights activist, actively solicits the voices of Muslims and Arabs, as well as young progressives who join pro-Palestinian protests.
Both are scheduled to attend National Arab-American Convention in Dearborn in September.