Michael Moore, a Michigan-based filmmaker and political activist, is warning Vice President Kamala Harris that her message to Arab Americans in the swing state is not resonating with key voters.

Asked by CNN's Jim Acosta on Friday whether the Harris campaign's approach to the war in Gaza – which argues it would get worse under former President Donald Trump – resonates with Michigan's Arab community, Moore responded : “No, I don't really think so.”

“The people who have lost people in this war, who know friends and relatives, who are suffering in Gaza, in the West Bank, all of that – it's very hard to point the finger at them and say, 'You have to vote. Trump is.' worse,” Moore said. “Their answer is, ‘Yes, he didn’t let us fly. There was a travel ban. That's 42,000 dead of my relatives, friends, neighbors and people.'”

“I was very hopeful and optimistic. I'd like to stay in that headspace, but I'm a lifelong Michigander. I know what the situation is,” he said.

Both campaigns are vying for the Arab-American vote this year, and in such a close election, the loss of one faction could be enough to cause an election loss.

Michigan is home to the largest concentration of Arab Americans in the United States, with an estimated population of over 500,000. This is also a crucial battleground state in the 2024 election.

With 15 Electoral College votes, Michigan has the fourth-most electoral votes among this year's seven swing states, behind Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia.

President Joe Biden won Michigan by just 154,000 votes in the 2020 election, thanks in part to the state's overwhelming support from Arab American voters.

Arab American support for Democrats plummeted after Hamas' attack on Israel, falling from 40 percent in April 2023 to just 23 percent in October 2023. Last October, fewer than one in five Arab Americans said they would vote for Biden would.

“Unfortunately, President Biden, whom I love, has made this crucial mistake in embracing Benjamin Netanyahu and supporting the slaughter of civilians,” Moore said. “None of us support that. Kamala Harris doesn't support that.”

Harris managed to boost some of those numbers again: 42 percent said they would vote for her in the presidential election. But Democrats fear Harris will pay the political price for the U.S. response to the war in Gaza and its support for Israel.

Moore warned Friday that despite the improvement, Harris could still lose Michigan by around 40,000 votes. After all, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lost to Trump in Michigan in the 2016 election by an average of just two votes per precinct. The Great Lake State would become one of three crucial states that Trump flipped on his way to victory.

Asked whether she had done enough to reach out to Arab-American voters, Harris told reporters Friday: “I'm very proud that I've received significant support from the Arab-American community, both because of my position on what we need to do in Gaza, as well as my stance on what we need to do in Gaza.” in the region to end the war and bring the hostages home, and my commitment to a two- States solution, but also because there are many issues within this community that challenge people and that they want to hear about.

“Including what we're going to do to make housing affordable, what we're going to do to lower the cost of food, what we're going to do to invest in small businesses. I have a plan for all of these things, and that is something that resonates in this community and with all Americans.

Moore argued Friday that it would be difficult to convince voters “filled with sadness” over the war in Gaza, saying it was like asking black voters to vote blue in the 1964 Alabama election. while their Democratic governor was a vocal segregationist.

“No one would do that,” Moore said.

Asked about Arab Americans who don't care if their protest votes make Trump the next president, Harris replied: “There's a real contrast in this race when you look at who stands for democracy and democratic principles.”

“Donald Trump talks about a list of enemies. He talks about using the American military to target American citizens. “He speaks in a way that suggests there should be retaliation and serious consequences just because people disagree with him,” Harris said Friday. “My point is very clear. I believe in our democracy. Democracies are wonderfully very complicated because we like debate, accepting and embracing differences of opinion and working them out.”

Moore expects non-voters in Michigan to choose Harris next week.

“Here’s the hope: There are 2 million non-voters in Michigan,” he said. “You are registered. They don't usually vote. Our whole goal for the last month is simple, and I do this personally in Michigan, I say, 'You all know me. Just for me, as a favor, just that.' Vote, please vote for Kamala Harris, and on November 6th you can go back to being a non-voter.'”

Update 11/01/24 3:55 p.m. ET This article has been updated with additional information.