South Africans in the US worried how a Trump presidency will impact pro-Palestine nations

JOHANNESBURG - While U.S democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris told supporters at a rally in Michigan, just hours before Americans cast their vote for the 47th president that she would do everything in her power to end the war in Gaza, her views on the Middle East conflict and the current administration's approach has left some of her supporters in limbo.

The question around the continuing bombardment of Gaza, along with America's role in supporting Israel's retaliatory attacks, which have now spilled over into other countries in the region, haunts Democratic voters, with some in states like Nevada previously telling EWN, they were reluctant to participate in these elections.

Polls also suggest that this issue has driven predominantly Muslim voters away from both Harris and her Republican contender Donald Trump towards the Green Party’s Jill Stein, a move, which according to Reverend Tutu Naomi, will be inconsequential.

Tutu, a South African, who holds dual passports and has participated in early voting, had to reconcile casting a vote for Harris while standing firmly on the side of the Palestinians.

"I really cannot legitimise even voting in the way that I did except to say that I believe the other option would be worse for the people of Palestine, for us here in this country and people all around the world," Tutu told EWN.

She made her mark following a trip to Palestine’s West Bank, knowing, as she points out, voting for any other candidate would basically mean giving a vote away to the Republicans.

Tutu said that she remains conflicted about her government’s role in Israel, but is hopeful that should Harris, make history, finding herself in the White House, she would be able to change tact and adopt a different approach.

The Reverend also expressed disappointment at Harris’ failure to address the humanitarian crisis currently unfolding in the Middle East.

Her approach, according to South African journalist Nic Dawes, who’s based in New York isn’t surprising as her campaign has to straddle a very fine line in its bid to woo support for her to become America’s next president.

The vice president is in a close race with Trump, with pundits suggesting, it could be anyone’s victory, depending on how many voters they manage to turn in the battleground states.

"It’s a massive wedge issue, splits the democratic coalition effectively, even though Donald Trump is much more sympathetic to Benjamin Netanyahu and his government than either Kamala or Joe Biden."

Dawes said that many remain conflicted because of Harris’ unwillingness to commit to using America’s leverage to restrain Israel.

He said that the Gaza conflict has also shown the generational divide, with younger people taking a clearer stance on the matter than their older counterparts.

The journalist also suggested that Harris’ public approach to the matter is also influenced by the support she stands to gain from those who are pro-Israel in some of the key swing states.

“They are trying to stitch together a coalition that includes the more conservative voters, like Liz Cheney as a proxy and figurehead for Kamala, [they are] trying to do that – thinking this will matter more than losing enthusiasm, losing the support of younger and more progressive voters,” he said.

For Tutu, there should be no question on how Trump will respond, even in his relations with countries like South Africa which have taken a firm stance on the Palestinian conflict and have approached the International Court of Justice on the matter.

“If Trump is re-elected he is going to do what he can to punish South Africa and other non-aligned nations, who have taken a principled stance around the suffering of the Palestinian people,” she said.

For Tutu, Trump remains a grave threat to America and global democracy.

“I think his stance will be exponentially worse, for the people of Palestine and the countries that stand in solidarity with Palestine,” she remarked.

Americans take to the polls on Tuesday.