WASHINGTON, D.C. – Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden both won their primaries in Michigan. A large turnout for ‘uncommitted’ votes is grabbing headlines.
Trump earned 68 percent of Republican votes overall. In Marquette County, he won 66 percent over Nikki Haley’s 29 percent. Biden won 81 percent of the Democratic votes overall, but 13 percent of the Democratic votes, which totals around 101-thousand votes, chose ‘uncommitted’ as their option.
Political experts said there is a large Arab community in Michigan. Right before the primary, a movement for Democrats to vote ‘uncommitted’ was gaining momentum, aiming to grab Biden’s attention about his stance in the Israel-Gaza conflict and hoping it would put pressure on Biden to call for a cease-fire in Gaza.
“Among the Arab community, since the beginning of the Israel assault on Gaza we’ve seen Biden’s approval numbers go from the high 60s, low 70s down to the teens,” said Dr. Todd Belt, George Washington University professor and director of political management. “This is an important democratic group in Michigan in terms of their voting power.”
The large ‘uncommitted’ votes is grabbing national attention and could possibly build momentum for other states.
“So Biden can’t afford seeing anything slipping away,” added Belt.
Haley has consistently lost to Trump in each primary but vows to stay in the race.
“Nikki Haley is in this race for two reasons: she goes into the convention as the person with the second most delegates if something happens to Trump,” said Belt. “Might not be a lot of delegates but it will at least help her solidify the argument she is the next person up if something happens to him. The other reason is to put together a ground game for 2028.”
