Tim Walz to Muslim voters in push before election: ‘Our hearts are broken’

Along with Ellison, several Muslim leaders have endorsed Harris and Walz in recent months, including the Black Muslim Leadership Council and the US representative Ilhan Omar. The group Muslim Women for Harris-Walz disbanded when the DNC denied a Palestinian American speaker, but later reaffirmed their support for the Democratic candidate.

The push to court Muslim voters 32 days before the election comes after months of criticism from Arab and Muslim American communities that the Democratic candidates – first Biden and then Harris – have failed to effectively engage them. Two weeks ago the Uncommitted National Movement, which mobilized more than 700,000 citizens to vote “uncommitted” or its equivalent in Democratic primaries throughout the nation, declined to endorse the Harris-Walz ticket. The Uncommitted National Movement said that Harris failed to meet a 15 September deadline to meet with Palestinian families and engage in discussions about a ceasefire deal.

Still, Thursday’s event served as a call to action for Emgage Action: “The Muslim American community must turn out in record numbers,” said Alzayat. “We are asking Muslim voters to also consider the human impact of a second Trump presidency, not just on us here in the United States … On the very people abroad we seek to help.”