Democratic Socialist Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) encouraged Democrats to “vote uncommitted” in the Feb. 27 presidential primary due to the Biden administration's handling of the conflict in the Gaza strip.
An “uncommitted” vote is a form of protest designed to send a message.
“Right now, we feel completely neglected and just unseen by our government,” Tlaib said in a video to Michigan residents filmed outside of a civic center in Dearborn. “If you want us to be louder, then come here and vote uncommitted.”
On Wednesday, Tlaib was the only member of Congress to vote against a resolution condemning Hamas for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel. In her message, she said she wants voters to “support life” and “stand up for every single life killed in Gaza.”
“It is important, as you all know, to not only march against the genocide, not only make sure that we’re calling our members of Congress and local electeds,” said Tlaib, who in November accused Biden of supporting “genocide” in Gaza.
“It is also important to create a voting bloc, something that is a bullhorn to say, ‘Enough is enough. We don’t want a country that supports wars and bombs and destruction.’”
NEW ENDORSEMENT: “If you want us to be louder, come here and vote uncommitted.” –@RashidaTlaib pic.twitter.com/8pxuUjq5QG
— #ListenToMichigan (@Listen2michigan) February 17, 2024
“I want you to think of all of the amazing young children and the people again, lives were lost in Gaza. This is the way you can raise our voices. Don’t make us even more invisible,” continued Tlaib, a vocal critic of Israel.
Tlaib marks the highest-profile Democrat so far to get behind the so-called “Listen to Michigan” campaign, which hopes to raise 10,000 “uncommitted” votes for its cause (around the same margin Donald Trump won the swing state in 2016).
Over the past three and a half months, Biden's handling of the war in Gaza has strained his relationship with progressives.
“A lot of people in our base are feeling really hesitant about supporting Joe Biden,” said Stevie O’Hanlon, spokesperson for climate-focused youth group Sunrise Movement, in a statement to the Wall Street Journal earlier this month. “Joe Biden needs the young generation in order to win and that is going to require him doing a lot on climate, on Gaza, on immigration, to try and regain trust that’s been broken.”
