Arab and Muslim voters won’t vote Democrat if Kamala Harris chooses Jewish Pennsylvania governor, leftists warn.
By World Israel News Staff
A potential running mate for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has been targeted by anti-Israel activists due to his Jewish identity and support for Israel.
Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro has been floated as a possible vice presidential pick for Harris.
But a new campaign against Shapiro, dubbing him “Genocide Josh,” seeks to pressure Harris into selecting a different running mate.
Although Shapiro has criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and called for a two-state solution to end the Israeli-Arab conflict, he has drawn ire from anti-Israel activists due to his statements of support for Jerusalem’s war against the Hamas terror group.
A website called “Say No to Genocide Josh” claims that if Harris selects Shapiro for her ticket, the Democrats risk losing the votes of various minority groups.
“Selecting a Vice Presidential nominee with anti-Palestinian and pro-war views will depress turnout among Muslim, Arab-American, and young voters, and greatly reduce the excitement that comes with a new nominee,” reads text on the website.
In order to gain “the trust of working-class, progressive, and young voters,” the campaign asserts, Harris must “support an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the illegal occupation of Palestine.”
Harris must present a platform that reflects “the majority of Americans” who want “an immediate ceasefire in Palestine,” though notably, the website did not present any evidence to support that claim.
The intense scrutiny of Shapiro’s stance on Israel, which is aligned with the vast majority of his party, stems from his Jewish identity, some Democrats said.
“Every potential nominee for Vice President is pro-Israel. Yet only one, Josh Shapiro, has been singled out by a far-left smear campaign calling him ‘Genocide Josh.’ The reason he is treated differently from the rest? Antisemitism,” Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) told Jewish Insider.
“The antisemitic far left must never be given veto power over the selection of a presidential running mate.”
“Josh Shapiro criticizes Netanyahu and he opposes BDS [boycott, divestment and sanctions], like most” Democrats, Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), who is Jewish, wrote on social media platform X.
“Interrogating his position differently because the governor is Jewish is unacceptable.”