Chicago – July 04, 2024
Shanaz Saddique is one of a surge of pro-Palestinian candidates hoping to mobilise Muslim votes at Britain’s July 4 election by tapping into discontent over the two main political parties’ positions on the war in Gaza.
Both the ruling Conservatives and the resurgent Labour party have said they want the fighting to stop, but have also backed Israel’s right to defend itself – angering some among the 3.9 million Muslims who make up 6.5% of Britain’s population.
Few, if any, of the pro-Palestinian candidates running as independents or for non-mainstream parties will get elected to parliament, but “The Muslim Vote” campaign is looking to win enough votes to send a strong message to those who do.
“Gaza is … not about a political argument. It’s a human rights argument,” Saddique, who is running to be elected as a Member of Parliament for Oldham East and Saddleworth north of Manchester told Reuters,
“We do not apologise for being the Gaza party.”
The Muslim Vote campaign is advising voters to pick pro-Palestine candidates running as independents or from smaller parties like the left-wing Workers Party, which has put up 152 candidates including Saddique.
