Democratic ‘Uncommitted’ Movement Set To Spread On Super Tuesday
Despite facing only a nominal challenge from U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) in his bid for re-election, President Joe Biden only secured just over four-fifths of the Democratic vote in Tuesday’s primary election in Michigan.
The relatively weak showing was due in large part to a protest vote by more than 100,000 citizens who chose “uncommitted” on the ballot in response to the president’s policies related to Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas.
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), the only Palestinian-American lawmaker in Congress, fueled the movement and celebrated its result after the election’s results were announced. Now, evidence is emerging that Democrats in other states — particularly those with a large Muslim population — could join in on the campaign against the incumbent.
Next week’s Super Tuesday elections include nine states where voters will be able to write in an option or choose either “uncommitted” or “no preference.”
Political activists in Colorado, including Deep Singh Badhesha, are leading efforts in that state to spark a similar wave of uncommitted votes.
“I’m voting for Noncommitted Delegate,” he wrote in a social media post. “Though it’ll be late, if Biden’s polls continue to suffer and a loss to Trump looks likely, it’s up to the Dem Delegates in Chicago in August to fix this and nominate someone who can win.”
Although Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) has not officially joined the movement spearheaded by her fellow “Squad” member Tlaib, the Muslim lawmaker has been highly critical of Biden’s foreign policy positions regarding the Middle East.
“It’s been 100 days since I signed on to the ceasefire resolution,” she wrote last month. “In that time more than 25,000 … Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers. I will continue to call for a ceasefire until there is an end to the atrocities and lasting peace. I urge my colleagues to do the same.”
Other Democratic leaders in the state, including the “Abandon Biden” campaign’s Minnesota chapter, are openly advocating for voters to select uncommitted in Tuesday’s election.
Saint Paul City Councilwoman Mitra Jalali called it “a chance for our communities who are impacted by this ongoing war, this conflict, that we have a chance to speak directly to our president who is running for election this year in our state to ask that he avert course.”
Given GOP presidential primary front-runner Donald Trump’s advantageous polling position against Biden, the erosion of support from the Muslim community, which backed Biden in force four years ago, could seal the incumbent’s fate in November.
