All posts tagged: uncommitted

For Arab Americans and Muslims in newly red Dearborn, a mix of defiance, ambivalence, fear

For Arab Americans and Muslims in newly red Dearborn, a mix of defiance, ambivalence, fear

Published by skeptic

DEARBORN, Mich. (RNS and NPR) — Jumana Judeh understands why so many in her Arab American community voted the way they did in last week’s presidential election, even as she had tried to get them to change their mind, endorsing Kamala Harris in the final days before the election. “It wasn’t the outcome that I was hoping for. But at the same time, I think the Arab community got their message across that we could no longer be taken for granted,” said Judeh, a Christian and a Palestinian American. “Even though we’ve paid a heavy price. “I’m scared. I have no clue what Trump is going to do. I don’t think Trump knows what he’s going to do,” she added. Home to one of the largest Arab American communities in the country, Dearborn, Michigan, has long been considered a Democratic stronghold. This election, the city went Republican for the first time since 9/11, with 42% voting for former President Donald Trump and only 36% supporting Vice President Harris. Nearly 1 in 5 voted for third-party …

Palestinian allies make last-ditch push for speaker on the DNC stage

Palestinian allies make last-ditch push for speaker on the DNC stage

Published by skeptic

(RNS) — Arab Americans, Muslim Americans and their interfaith allies spent much of Thursday (Aug. 22) pushing Democratic officials to allow a Palestinian American to speak from the party convention’s main stage, to convey a message of solidarity despite the party’s so-far consistent support for Israel in its prosecution of the war in Gaza. The push was accompanied by an all-night sit-in outside Chicago’s United Center at which members of the “uncommitted” movement also made speeches pressing the Democratic National Convention to feature a Palestinian speaker. The uncommitted — so-called because members of the movement wrote in “uncommitted” on their ballots rather than vote for President Joe Biden in this year’s Democratic primaries — want the DNC to recognize the suffering of Palestinians, 40,000 of whom have been killed by Israel’s massive Gaza assault of the past 10 months, an assault backed by U.S. bombs and munitions that has flattened the Gaza Strip and left tens of thousands homeless.  In an emotional speech from the stage of the convention on Wednesday, Israeli Americans Rachel Goldberg-Polin …

How the uncommitted movement rocked Biden over Gaza | US elections 2024

How the uncommitted movement rocked Biden over Gaza | US elections 2024

Published by skeptic

People in Michigan, and across the country, had been protesting for months over the Gaza war and the US government’s role in it, marching in the streets, showing up at the president’s public events, and pressuring their elected officials to support a ceasefire. But it didn’t seem as though Joe Biden was listening to a groundswell of Democrats who opposed the war and US media coverage of the protests, and of the war itself, seems to be waning, too. The burgeoning anti-war movement needed another way to get the president’s attention. It landed on a strategy: telling Democratic voters to cast ballots for “uncommitted”, essentially no one, as a protest against the war in Gaza and to demand a ceasefire. What then transpired in a series of primary votes shows the strength of a quick-moving group of voters whose decisions in November could decide the election and the fate of US intervention in Gaza. Their ability to swiftly and cheaply reach voters serves as a lesson in grassroots organizing – and underlines the discontent among …

Super Tuesday states see “uncommitted” votes in protest of war in Gaza

Super Tuesday states see “uncommitted” votes in protest of war in Gaza

Published by skeptic

Placards adorn a wall at an Uncommitted Minnesota watch party during the presidential primary in Minneapolis on Super Tuesday. Stephen Maturen/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Stephen Maturen/AFP via Getty Images Placards adorn a wall at an Uncommitted Minnesota watch party during the presidential primary in Minneapolis on Super Tuesday. Stephen Maturen/AFP via Getty Images Hundreds of thousands of voters across the country cast their ballots for no candidate in Democratic primaries on Super Tuesday, instead selecting versions of “uncommitted,” as a movement opposing President Biden’s handling of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza grows across the country. The results came just a week after the Michigan presidential primary, where the “uncommitted” choice on the ballot garnered over 100,000 votes. The results followed a three-week campaign run primarily by younger Arab American and Muslim organizers from Southeast Michigan. Their goal was to urge voters to push Biden to call for an immediate, permanent cease-fire and halt U.S. aid to Israel — and for him to make these changes ahead of the general election …

‘Uncommitted’ racks up more than 45k votes in Minnesota Democratic primary

‘Uncommitted’ racks up more than 45k votes in Minnesota Democratic primary

Published by skeptic

More than 45,000 Democratic primary voters in Minnesota selected “uncommitted” on their primary ballots this year, surpassing support for long-shot Democratic challenger Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) in his home state. With 80 percent of the vote reported early Wednesday morning, “uncommitted” received 45,871 votes – 18.9 percent of the total, according to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ’s election results tracker. President Biden won the state’s primary, with 170,890 votes, or 70.6 percent of the total reported vote as of Wednesday morning. Phillips came in third place, with 18,969 votes, or 7.8 percent of the total vote count. Author Marianne Williamson — who briefly suspended her campaign, but re-joined the race late last month — had the fourth-most support, with 1.4 percent of the total, followed by Jason Palmer, who received 0.3 percent of the vote in Minnesota. “Congratulations to Joe Biden, Uncommitted, Marianne Williamson, and Nikki Haley for demonstrating more appeal to Democratic Party loyalists than me,” Phillips wrote in a statement posted to X, formerly Twitter, last night, adding, “And, Jason Palmer.” The uncommitted vote …

Column: In 2024, it’s an election between authoritarianism and the uncommitted

Column: In 2024, it’s an election between authoritarianism and the uncommitted

Published by skeptic

Super Tuesday is over and so is any hope that Donald Trump isn’t speeding toward the White House. With clear victories in the primaries, including in California, and a Supreme Court win that keeps him on the Colorado ballot, any belief that Trump doesn’t have a good chance of moving back into the Executive Mansion, or that the Republican Party will turn away from hate and authoritarianism, is magical thinking. Just about as magical as believing that Biden will somehow begin to inspire the many critical voters who have slowly been turning away from him — young voters swayed by a campaign against his age; voters agonized by the destruction in Gaza; voters who despite the strong economy still are shocked by inflation that makes filling the refrigerator increasingly hard. And most of all, voters like me who are just tired. It is incredibly disconcerting that we don’t have a Democratic nominee who inspires faith, much less excitement. “Hold your nose and vote for Hillary” wasn’t a winning strategy in 2016 (personally, I voted for …

Socialist organization endorses push for ‘uncommitted’ votes in Democratic primaries ahead of Super Tuesday

Socialist organization endorses push for ‘uncommitted’ votes in Democratic primaries ahead of Super Tuesday

Published by skeptic

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), the largest leftist political organization in the country, endorsed the push for “uncommitted” votes in Super Tuesday primaries Sunday. The “uncommitted” votes are meant to serve as protest against the president’s response to the Israel-Hamas war. The votes express support for a party, but not for any candidate on the ballot. The endorsement comes after more than 100,000 Michigan voters backed the “uncommitted” line in the state’s primary as Biden faces rising pressure from Democrats to back a permanent cease-fire in the conflict.  “Until this administration ends its support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza and delivers a permanent, lasting ceasefire, Joe Biden will bear the responsibility for another Trump presidency,” the DSA wrote Sunday in a statement on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “Biden is on track to lose the election to Trump unless he chooses to listen to the working class of this country and change course. Defeat is certain if he fails to do so,” the group said, citing turnout for the “uncommitted” vote push …

More than 100K Michigan voters pick “uncommitted” over Biden − does that matter for November?

More than 100K Michigan voters pick “uncommitted” over Biden − does that matter for November?

Published by skeptic

Joe Biden won the 2024 Michigan Democratic primary, but “uncommitted” ran a spirited campaign. More than 100,000 Michiganders voted “uncommitted” in Tuesday’s Democratic primary, 13% of the Democratic electorate. Listen to Michigan organized the uncommitted campaign in Michigan, promoting it as a way to express dissatisfaction with the Biden administration’s public stance in support of Israel’s actions in its conflict with Hamas in Gaza. The group also set a goal of securing more uncommitted votes than the 11,000-vote margin by which Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in 2016. The total was nearly 10 times that number. Biden won Michigan in 2020 by 154,181 votes. While there were no exit polls conducted with Michigan primary voters, preelection polling just before the primary showed Biden’s weakness among potential young voters as well as Arab Americans. Michigan has the largest Arab, Muslim and Palestinian population in the United States, currently numbering more than 200,000. More than half of the population of Dearborn, Michigan, is Arab, as is its mayor; it is home to the largest mosque in the …

Biden’s campaign responds to Michigan’s uncommitted votes push over Israel-Gaza

Biden’s campaign responds to Michigan’s uncommitted votes push over Israel-Gaza

Published by skeptic

Joe Biden answers questions while leaving the White House on January 30. Win McNamee/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Win McNamee/Getty Images Joe Biden answers questions while leaving the White House on January 30. Win McNamee/Getty Images In Michigan, a push to encourage voters to send President Biden a message about his refusal to call for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza may have worked. The group Listen to Michigan did not ask their followers to stay home from Tuesday’s Democratic primary. Instead, they asked them to vote for “uncommitted.” Statewide, just over 13% of voters did, taking a little of the shine off of President Biden’s victory. All Things Considered host Mary Louise Kelly spoke to Mitch Landrieu — the national co-chair of the Biden campaign and former mayor of New Orleans — about the Michigan results, the campaign’s direction going forward, and how it plans to connect with younger, Arab American and Muslim voters. This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity. Interview highlights Mary Louise Kelly: I want to say congratulations …

Michigan’s ‘uncommitted’ voters send warning sign to President Biden

Michigan’s ‘uncommitted’ voters send warning sign to President Biden

Published by Sam

(RNS) — In Tuesday’s Democratic primary in Michigan, President Joe Biden celebrated a victory, but it was tainted by the choice of 13% of those who voted to declare themselves “uncommitted” to protest the president’s handling of the war in Gaza. The activist organization Listen to Michigan, which led the campaign to boost the “uncommitted” vote, was hoping 10,000 voters would vote “uncommitted.” Results indicate that some 100,000 Michiganders chose that option. “This victory isn’t merely statistical,” said the director of Emgage’s Michigan chapter, Hira Khan, in a statement. “It’s a powerful demonstration of our collective will for significant policy changes regarding Gaza, beginning with an urgent call for a mutual ceasefire.” For weeks, the chapter organized phone banks to encourage voters to vote “uncommitted.”  Robert S. McCaw, the government affairs director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said Tuesday’s results are a warning sign for Biden and signal that his support to Israel might have alienated Muslim voters and might cost him the support of Michigan’s Muslim voters, who Emgage says number 206,050.  In …