The people behind a new Pennsylvania campaign have issued a warning to presidential candidate Kamala Harris: Change the U.S. policy in Gaza or lose our vote.
#NoCeasefireNoVote launched Thursday across the state. The campaign is collecting signatures from voters who say they will not vote for Harris, the vice president and presumptive Democratic nominee, unless she abandons President Joe Biden's approach to the conflict. The pledge specifically mentions two conditions, at least one of which is necessary to earn back votes. A permanent ceasefire must be achieved in Gaza or Harris must commit to an arms embargo against Israel if she is elected president.
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The campaign is supported by the Unity & Justice Fund, a super PAC linked to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. According to federal filings, the committee formed in June.
Organizers believe the action is necessary after nine months of violence in Gaza. Palestinian health authorities say Israeli forces have killed over 39,000 people, most of whom were civilians, since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. The United States has been one of Israel's strongest allies throughout the bombings, sending $15 billion in aid to the nation in April.
"We have signed petitions, donated money, staged protests and occupations, gone to jail, gone to Congress, and engaged millions of people across the country to stop this genocide, but Kamala Harris and Joe Biden continue providing the bombs for Israel to drop on schools and hospitals," Rabbi Rachel Kipnes, an organizer with the campaign, said in a statement. "I am afraid of another Trump term, but my conscience will not allow me to vote for anyone who is using our tax dollars to kill children and decimate entire communities. I am calling on Vice President Harris to bring about a ceasefire and secure a path to victory in November."
Philadelphia has been the site of numerous Gaza protests, from the student encampments on the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University campuses to the traffic blockade that resulted in 68 arrests in April. More recently, pro-Palestinian protesters marched on City Hall during the Fourth of July.
Over 16,000 Democratic voters in Philadelphia County also wrote in a candidate for the presidential primary election rather than vote for Biden, who was running for reelection until his exit from the race Sunday. (He quickly endorsed his vice president.) Most of those votes were attributed to the "uncommitted" campaign, which encouraged pro-Palestinian voters to write in "uncommitted" for president to signal their opposition to Biden's policies in Gaza. Across Pennsylvania, over 60,000 Democrats wrote in a candidate for president in the 2024 primary election.
Given Pennsylvania's position as a battleground state, #NoCeasefireNoVote organizers think Harris should be paying attention. Biden won the state by a narrow margin of roughly 80,000 votes in 2020, lending the campaign a sense of leverage in the upcoming election.
"We're in a unique position to put pressure on Vice President Kamala Harris and the Biden-Harris administration to take action toward a ceasefire," said Reem Abuelhaj, a spokesperson for the campaign.
National attention has already turned to Pennsylvania as speculation over Harris's running mate ramps up. Gov. Josh Shapiro is considered a front-runner who could help deliver the state to the Democrats. But the #NoCeasefireNoVote campaign reveals one of his potential liabilities; Shapiro has been a staunch supporter of Israel, which could complicate the ticket.
#NoCeasefireNoVote organizers say it's too early to share any initial numbers, but they will be contacting voters via calls and texts in the coming months. While they have not had any communication with the White House or Harris's campaign, Abuelhaj says "we look forward to hearing from them."
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