The National Uncommitted Movement said Thursday the group would not formally endorse Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, potentially hurting her chances in the key swing state of Michigan.
In a lengthy statement, the leaders made clear they did not support former President Donald Trump and did not want the movement’s followers to vote for a third party.
“(E)specially since third-party votes in key states could inadvertently help deliver a Trump presidency, given our country’s broken electoral college system,” the statement said.
But after Harris’ campaign missed a Sept. 15 deadline to meet with Michigan Palestinians affected by the war in Gaza, Uncommitted leaders decided not to welcome the Democrat at this time.
The group’s leaders said they repeatedly tried to engage the Harris-Walz campaign on certain policy demands, including enacting an arms embargo to prevent Israel from bombing Gaza.
Vice President Kamala Harris (left) leaves for Michigan on Thursday for her event with talk show host Oprah Winfrey. The Michigan-based group, Uncommitted National Movement, said it would not receive her endorsement because of her policy on Gaza.
Members of the Uncommitted movement march at the Democratic National Convention. Leaders said Thursday they would not endorse Vice President Kamala Harris, but also encouraged their followers not to vote for a third party because that could help former President Donald Trump.
The group criticized his “unwillingness” to move away from an “unconditional arms policy” to arm Israel, saying that “made it impossible for us to support it.”
“For months, we have urged Vice President Harris to change her policy on Gaza so that we can mobilize voters in key states to save lives and our democracy,” the statement said.
“The DNC and the vice president’s campaign failed to make even a small gesture to unite our party before November by rejecting the simple request for a Palestinian-American president,” he continued.
At last month’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago, organizers invited Jonathan Polin and Rachel Goldberg to speak.
They are the parents of Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was recently killed by the Hamas terrorist group.
No Palestinian-American was chosen to address the convention, despite large pro-Palestinian demonstrations outside the United Center.
“Now, the vice president’s campaign is courting Dick Cheney while marginalizing disillusioned anti-war voices, pushing them to consider third-party options or sit out this important election,” the statement continued.
Vice President Kamala Harris (left) greets Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow (center) on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews, during her trip to Michigan on Thursday. Michigan is where the Uncommitted Movement’s lack of support could have the biggest impact
The Uncompromising Movement began in Michigan, the state where it could do the most damage to Harris.
During the Democratic primaries, when President Joe Biden was still leading the ticket, more than 101,000 Democratic primary voters in Michigan chose “uncommitted” over the incumbent president.
Michigan was one of three so-called “blue wall” states that Trump won in 2016 to defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton, along with Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Eight years ago, Trump won the state by about 10,000 votes.
Four years later, Biden managed to regain the support of the United States by about 150,000 votes.
The Real Clear Politics Poll Average shows the current race in Michigan is extraordinarily close, with Harris leading Trump by just 1.7 percent.
The Uncommitted announcement came the same day Harris was traveling back to Michigan to host a livestreamed event with legendary talk show host Oprah Winfrey.