Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign has come under fire from at least one prominent Muslim American group after a local man on Monday was escorted from a venue hosting the Democratic presidential nominee’s town hall-style event in Royal Oak, Michigan.
The tension follows Harris’ recent reach-out efforts to the Great Lakes State’s Muslim population, a key voting bloc as she seeks to make inroads in the battleground state. Muslim Americans in Michigan typically vote for Democratic presidential candidates; however, recent polling indicates potential breaks in that trend amid the group’s ongoing concerns over the Biden administration’s handling of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Ahmed Ghanim, an activist who once ran for the U.S. House in Michigan’s 11th Congressional District, told Newsweek via phone interview on Tuesday that he filled out all of the proper paperwork to attend the event at the Royal Oak Music Theater. He stood in line, went through security clearance and was seated.
Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris, left, sits with former Republican U.S. Representative Liz Cheney for a town hall at the Royal Oak Music Theatre on October 21 in Royal Oak, Michigan. Ahmed…
Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris, left, sits with former Republican U.S. Representative Liz Cheney for a town hall at the Royal Oak Music Theatre on October 21 in Royal Oak, Michigan. Ahmed Ghanim, a Muslim American, said he was removed from the venue without a reason.
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“A few minutes after I was seated, a lady asked me to follow her to the door. When I got to the door, she closed the door,” Ghanim said. He alleged that two Secret Service officers said the campaign wanted him removed and that he was threatened with arrest if he did not leave.
But Ghanim told The Detroit News that he questioned one of them about why he was being ousted from the theater, with the officer answering, “It’s not us. It’s the venue,” the outlet reported.
In a statement to the News, the Harris campaign’s Michigan senior adviser, Chris Wyant, said the vice president’s team “regrets this action and its impact on Dr. Ghanim and the community, and he is welcome at future events.”
Newsweek also reached out to the Harris campaign for a response on Tuesday night.
Ghanim is upset by the ousting from the theater. “I feel there is not much respect or appreciation for the Muslim community,” he said. “No one from the campaign even called me and so it is lack of respect and I feel like I was singled out and I feel I was profiled.”
The Council on American–Islamic Relations Action, a nonprofit group focused on Muslim American civic engagement, shared similar sentiments.
“As Donald Trump ramps up his outreach to the Muslim and Arab communities, the Harris campaign removes, under threat of arrest, a Muslim community leader who merely responded to an invitation,” Basim Elkarra, executive director of CAIR Action, said in a written statement. “This disturbing action on the part of the Harris campaign sends a dangerous message of exclusion to the Muslim community.”
As a battleground state with a high percentage of Muslim voters, the Harris and Trump campaigns have redoubled efforts with the bloc. Many registered Muslim voters in Michigan live in the Detroit metropolitan area.
“Given how tight things will be, a handful of votes could matter. In Michigan, there are over 200,000 registered Muslim voters. They, in 2020, voted for Biden by about 70 percent, and so a significant drop there could cost the Democrats the election,” Wa’el Alzayat, CEO of Engage, previously told Newsweek.
With two weeks until Election Day, both parties are working overtime to shore up pivotal groups, as even slight movement could shift the electoral tides in swing states.
CAIR said it feels it is important for the Harris campaign to make direct amends. “It’s coming at an interesting time when Trump is reaching out to Muslim leaders and meeting with them directly,” Elkarra said in a phone interview with Newsweek. “This could possibly help increase support for Trump.”