It’s a result that could bode poorly for his re-election chances. Joe Biden won the Democratic primary in Michigan on Tuesday, February 28, but was severely sanctioned for his support for Israel in this state with a large Muslim and Arab population.
According to initial estimates, more than 50,000 “uncommitted” votes, the equivalent of a blank vote, were cast in the ballot boxes in this state, responding to a call to put pressure on the American president for a cease-fire. -immediate fire in Gaza. This result is worrying for the Democratic leader because he narrowly won this state against Donald Trump four years ago. Each defection undermines his chances of being re-elected in the November presidential election.
Activists in this key Midwestern region launched the “Listen to Michigan” campaign, to deliver a “powerful and unequivocal message” that financing and supporting the war in Gaza is “at odds with the values of the Democratic Party.
“President Biden is funding the bombs that are falling on relatives of families living right here in Michigan, people who voted for him and who feel completely betrayed,” explained Layla Elabed, a leader of the group. As the number of civilian casualties rises in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, Joe Biden has seen his support erode significantly among Muslims and Arab Americans, an electorate that had been decisive in his victory over Donald Trump in 2020. The Democratic leader only won this northern state by 150,000 votes four years ago.
“Exceeded expectations”
Reacting to his victory in this primary on Tuesday in a press release, Joe Biden thanked “all the residents of Michigan who made their voices heard”, without mentioning this protest vote. White House officials are displaying growing frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his conduct of the war in Gaza.
However, the United States continues to deliver quantities of weapons to Israel, while leading intense efforts to negotiate a second truce in the war provoked by the bloody attack by Hamas on October 7 on Israeli soil. Joe Biden has asked Congress for billions of dollars in additional military aid for Israel, and his administration has vetoed several UN resolutions calling for a ceasefire.
The “Listen to Michigan” group wanted to mobilize at least 10,000 voters for its campaign, a figure that is not just symbolic, activists say. A goal already easily exceeded. “Our movement was victorious this evening and far exceeded our expectations,” he said in a statement. “I was proud today (…) to vote blank,” said Rashida Tlaib, elected representative from Michigan of Palestinian origin, urging Joe Biden to listen to “the majority of Americans who say + Enough +. Enough of wars , enough of using our dollars to finance genocide.”
Trump on his way
Fatima Elzaghir also voted blank in this election, she told AFP on Tuesday. “It’s obvious that appealing to empathy doesn’t hold sway with most politicians. So perhaps the fact that (Biden) wants to win Michigan will push him to a cease-and-desist. fire,” said this young nurse. Joe Biden’s only real opponent for the Democratic nomination was Dean Phillips, a wealthy parliamentarian from the state of Minnesota, who received only 2.8% of the votes, according to initial estimates.
On the Republican side, Donald Trump has already won hands down four states that voted, including South Carolina on Saturday, and Michigan has, for the moment, not interrupted its march towards the Republican nomination this summer. For its primaries, the Republican Party opted for a complex hybrid system which will conclude four days later.
Her only remaining opponent, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, lost in her home state of South Carolina, but she refuses to give up, saying she doesn’t believe Donald Trump can defeat Joe Biden in November.