https://arab.news/b77ws
- Trump appears to have benefited from disappointment with the Biden administration’s support for Israel
- Result is surprising given acknowledgement Trump is likely to be a better friend to Netanyahu than Harris
LONDON: Arab Americans are evenly divided over which of the two main candidates would be better for the Middle East if elected president, according to a poll conducted for Arab News by YouGov.
Both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are each chosen by 38 percent of those polled, while only 9 percent back Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who has consistently been the most vocal critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza and Lebanon.
Trump appears to have benefited from the disappointment among Arab Americans with the Biden administration’s support for, and only muted criticism of, Israel’s increasingly deadly and indiscriminate response to the Hamas attack last October.
Asked which of the candidates would be most likely to successfully resolve the conflict, 39 percent back Trump and 33 percent Harris.
Even allowing for the widespread disenchantment with the performance of the Biden administration with regard to Israel, confidence in Trump on this issue is somewhat puzzling.
During his presidency, Arab-American support for Trump had drained away as his administration formally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, moving the US Embassy there from Tel Aviv, and presided over the Abraham Accords, which were widely seen as favoring Israel and marginalizing the Palestinians.
But in the YouGov poll results, confidence in Trump is even more surprising given the acknowledgement that of the two main candidates, he is likely to be the better friend to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The survey asked respondents to classify the candidates in terms of their support for Israel’s government. Harris is deemed to be “somewhat” or “very supportive” by 59 percent, while 69 percent think the same about Trump.
Stein’s frequent criticism of Israel over the past year appears not to have registered with a significant proportion of Arab-American voters.
Not only do 24 percent think she has been supportive of the Israeli government, but 44 percent do not know what her stance is.