How Michigan Organizers Got 100,000 ‘Uncommitted’ Votes

One January evening, Waleed Shahid, a Democratic strategist based in New York, sent out a seven-page memo to over 100 people. It outlined a dramatic plan to show the White House that voters want President Joe Biden to change course in Gaza, and included a call for for an immediate cease-fire in a conflict that has killed more than 30,000 Palestinians.

The plan centered around the Democratic presidential primary in Michigan — a crucial swing state that is home to the largest Arab and Muslim population in the U.S. Shahid’s memo summarized talking points and what needed to be done to mobilize voters in Michigan.

Within days, more than a dozen people — including organizers, political strategists and activists — joined a Zoom call about the impending primary. Most people had their cameras off. Those with their cameras on looked exhausted. But they set a goal: Bring out at least 10,000 people to vote “uncommitted” in the state’s Feb. 27 primary to send a message to Biden.

Shahid was hopeful, but he wasn’t sure if reaching 10,000 voters would be possible.

On Election Day, the “uncommitted” vote had hit that number within minutes of the polls closing. By the end of the tally, more than 100,000 voters — more than 13% of the Michigan Democrats who voted in the primary — cast their ballots as “uncommitted.” The next day, a co-chair for Biden’s re-election bid acknowledged the Listen to Michigan campaign, telling NPR that their “message has been received.”

An effort to challenge Biden over his Gaza policy at the polls has been bubbling nationwide, andorganizers in other states are attempting to replicate the Michigan success. Some Super Tuesday states — including Massachusetts, Minnesota, Colorado, North Carolina, Tennessee,