‘Uncommitted’ Campaign, Backing Cease-fire in Gaza, Makes Last-Minute Push on Super Tuesday
Of the more than a dozen states holding competitions on Super Tuesday, only Minnesota, Massachusetts, Alabama, Colorado, Iowa, North Carolina, and Tennessee have uncommitted options.
After a successful campaign in Michigan, groups pushing voters to declare themselves “uncommitted” in the Democratic primary as a show of support for a cease-fire in the conflict between Israel and Hamas are redoubling their efforts on Super Tuesday.
In Michigan, more than 100,000 Democratic primary voters cast their ballots for “uncommitted,” accounting for some 13 percent of the vote total there. In the most comparable recent presidential primary there in 2012, just 21,000 Democratic primary voters cast their ballot for “uncommitted.”
Some of the organizations that supported the “uncommitted” campaign in Michigan are now making a last-minute push to convince voters to vote uncommitted in the Super Tuesday primary elections.
The organization behind the “uncommitted” campaign, Listen to Michigan, said in a statement that “states across the country are following suit after a major victory for the uncommitted vote in Michigan last Tuesday.”
“In efforts to warn Biden, he must change course on Gaza,” the group said in a statement. “The growing movement shows now is the time to listen.”
Of the more than a dozen states holding competitions on Super Tuesday, only Minnesota, Massachusetts, Alabama, Colorado, Iowa, North Carolina, and Tennessee have uncommitted options on their ballots.
In a statement, a Vote Uncommitted Minnesota spokeswoman, Asma Nizami, said that “Democratic voters in Minnesota will ensure the Biden administration knows that his policies in Gaza are costing lives and crucial party support.”
“Considering the quick turnaround, we believe that Vote Uncommitted Minnesota will successfully send a message to President Biden that Democrats will not settle for a presidential candidate that enables genocide against the Palestinians,” Ms. Nizami said.
The Democratic Socialists of America also endorsed “uncommitted” over the weekend, saying, “Until this administration ends its support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza and delivers a permanent, lasting cease-fire, Joe Biden will bear the responsibility for another Trump presidency.”
The DSA is also using phone banks in an attempt to instruct voters on how to vote “uncommitted” — or in an equivalent way — in their states.
“Until the Biden administration wakes up to today’s political realities, DSA encourages voters who want an end to this genocide to vote ‘Uncommitted’ in the Democratic presidential primaries,” the DSA said in a statement.
The groups have not set a benchmark for what a successful “uncommitted” campaign result looks like in these states. They have, however, claimed responsibility for a change in rhetoric from some high-ranking members of the administration, like Vice President Harris.
“What we are seeing every day in Gaza is devastating, and our common humanity compels us to act,” Ms. Harris said over the weekend. “Given the immense scale of suffering in Gaza, there must be an immediate cease-fire for at least the next six weeks.”