We have extended our study of the competition between the drive and stabilization of plasma microinstabilities by sheared flow to include electromagnetic effects at low plasma $beta$ (the ratio of plasma to magnetic pressure). The extended system of
characteristic equations is formulated, for a dissipative fluid model developed from the gyrokinetic equation, using a twisting mode representation in sheared slab geometry and focusing on the ion temperature gradient mode. Perpendicular flow shear convects perturbations along the field at the speed we denote as $Mc_s$ (where $c_s$ is the sound speed). $M > 1/ sqrt{beta}$ is required to make the system characteristics unidirectional and inhibit eigenmode formation, leaving only transitory perturbations in the system. This typically represents a much larger flow shear than in the electrostatic case, which only needs $M>1$. Numerical investigation of the region $M < 1/sqrt{beta}$ shows the driving terms can conflict, as in the electrostatic case, giving low growth rates over a range of parameters. Also, at modest drive strengths and low $beta$ values typical of experiments, including electromagnetic effects does not significantly alter the growth rates. For stronger flow shear and higher $beta$, geometry characteristic of the spherical tokamak mitigates the effect of an instability of the shear Alfv{e}n wave, driven by the parallel flow shear.
