'They need our vote,' Arabs in Pennsylvania say before Harris-Trump debate

Battleground state where every vote matters is home to 180,000 Arab Americans

US Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump are set to take the stage in a televised presidential debate on Tuesday. AFP

US Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump are set to battle in a high-stakes televised debate on Tuesday night, as the country prepares for this year's presidential election.

The contest, during which candidates are expected to field questions about the economy, immigration, the Israel-Gaza war and aid to Ukraine, will take place in Philadelphia, the biggest city in the must-win state of Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania is home to a diverse Arab-American population dating back to the 19th century. Christian Lebanese families began settling there in the 1860s. Palestinian Americans began arriving in the 1950s, shortly after landing in New York City. Many hail from the occupied West Bank village of Mikhmas, on the outskirts of Jerusalem.

Today, Philadelphia is home to a Lebanese, Palestinian, Syrian, Egyptian, Tunisian and Moroccan population. More than 180,000 Arab Americans live in Pennsylvania, the Arab American Institute says.

Like Arab Americans elsewhere in the country, voters rallied behind President Joe Biden in 2020, helping him unseat Mr Trump, who had passed the so-called Muslim travel ban.

But now they say they are devastated with the Biden administration's continued support for Israel in the war in Gaza, which began with the October 7 Hamas attack that killed about 1,200 people.

More than 40,900 Palestinians have been killed since the conflict broke out, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

“We feel really betrayed by Biden,” Marwan Kreidie, a longtime community organiser and Philadelphia activist, told The National.

“We really went out and organised for Biden and got nothing … and then look what he did in Palestine,” he added.

Mr Trump won the state – worth 20 electoral votes – by less than 1 per cent in 2016. Mr Biden reclaimed it in 2020 by a similarly narrow margin.

Mr Biden announced that he was dropping out of the presidential race in July, after coming under intense pressure from his own Democratic Party over his mental acuity after a disastrous debate performance in which he struggled to finish thoughts and sentences.

He has also endured intense criticism over his steadfast support for Israel, and his administration's efforts to mediate an enduring ceasefire have so far come to nothing.

Mr Biden's withdrawal brought initial relief as well as optimism for Arab Americans, but they say Ms Harris has so far indicated that she would not change course on Gaza.

“She's been telling us since she became the nominee who she is, what her position is, and we believe her,” said Nagi Abulatefa, who grew up on the outskirts of Abasan, in Gaza's Khan Younis.

He added that the Biden administration's policy on Gaza has left him feeling “abandoned, forgotten and not worthy of anything.”

At least 20 of Mr Abulatefa's relatives have been killed since the start of the war, and about 20 are missing, either under the rubble or in Israeli detention.

His elderly mother, Zeinah, died early in the war after drinking contaminated water.

“They gave her an IV and she died a slow death in the corridor of a hospital in Khan Younis, there was nothing they could do for her,” Mr Abulatefa told The National.

He and others in his suburban community of Allentown are considering voting for a third-party candidate. Many have opposed voting for Mr Trump, who has vowed to give Israel even more support.

“The most important thing for us in this election is to ensure that the Democrats lose,” said Palestinian-American novelist and activist Susan Abulhawa.

“I would like to, in the process, empower a third party … we can't keep these two-party chains on our wrists, we have choices.”

During the debate on Tuesday, protesters are set to hold a demonstration outside City Hall.

“Shut down the presidential debate for Gaza,” one flyer on social media read.

Mr Kreidie said the Arab-American community, as well as their allies and supporters, have come out to support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and university students across the state have demonstrated in great numbers.

“The community is really supportive, but the community is just devastated.”

He voiced hope Ms Harris would change her language on Gaza during the debate. He added that her team has reached out to him and other local leaders in an effort to build support among Arab Americans. A meeting is scheduled for later this month.

“They shouldn't discount us,” Mr Kreidie said. “They need our vote.”