(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party are “leaving votes on the table” as the administration’s policies on Israel and Gaza continue to alienate many progressives, according to the co-founder of the Arab American Institute and a longtime member of the Democratic National Committee.
“I think that there are votes that are being left on the table by the Democrats who failed to recognize the importance of changing policy on Gaza sufficient enough to bring those votes back to them,” Dr. James Zogby told “NewsNation Now” on Friday.
Zogby said Biden’s policies such as not forcefully calling for a cease-fire or halting weapons shipments are hurting him with numerous groups, not just Arab Americans.
“It’s younger voters, it’s Black voters, it’s Asian voters. In particular, young, progressive Jewish voters. It’s not the overwhelming majority of those, it’s not even a majority,” but it’s costing Biden support.
One particular area where his waning support is the crucial battleground state of Michigan where a protest “uncommitted” vote secured two delegates in the state’s Democratic primary in February.
Zogby believes those voters would ultimately cast their ballot for Biden if policy there were policy changes in the Middle East. He pointed to a recent Arab American Institute poll in which 60% of respondents said they would vote for the sitting president if arms sales to Israel were suspended and a cease-fire was to happen.
“You cannot lose those votes,” Zogby said. “That is what the coalition of Democrats has come to include the path to victory; they can’t lose those folks. And Democrats will lose them by either having them vote for a third party or stay at home.”