The Democratic Party faces a potential challenge in swing states ahead of the November election as support among black evangelicals, Mormons, and Muslims has declined for President Joe Biden, according to a report from the Cooperative Election Study.
In Arizona, Biden’s approval rating among Latter Day Saints (LDS) members has dropped to 20% in 2023, a decline from 30% in 2021, with nearly 500,000 Mormons residing in the state. Meanwhile, the president’s popularity has decreased by 12% among Muslim voters in Michigan since 2021, with nearly 250,000 Muslims calling the state home, making it the largest Muslim community in the country.
Muslim activists attribute the decline of support for Biden to his stance on the war in Gaza, with Satin Tashnizi, executive director of Emerald Project, stating that the Muslim community feels “incredibly betrayed” by the administration’s support for the “genocide of Palestinians.” This sentiment was echoed by Massad Boulos, a powerful Arab American and Trump ally who is ramping up outreach to Muslims in Michigan, citing the division within the Democratic Party.
Boulos, who is tied to the Trump family through his son’s marriage to Tiffany Trump, believes Trump can gain support among Muslims by capitalizing on this division. He has aligned himself with the group Arab Americans for Trump and has appeared at events attended by Arab American activists, including a fundraising event in Michigan that featured House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Separately, Biden’s approval rating among African American Protestants has dropped 9 points since 2020, with research from the Brookings Institution indicating that some black evangelicals are increasingly dissatisfied with the Democratic Party’s stance on moral issues such as gay marriage.
