Connecticut’s protest vote
The GOP ballot listed Trump and three candidates no longer running: Ron Desantis, governor of Florida; Haley, former South Carolina governor and UN ambassador; and Ryan Binkley, a Texas clergyman.
The Democratic ballot listed Biden and three others: Marianne Williamson, who ran four years ago; Dean Phllips, who dropped out on March 6; and Cenk Uygur, a Turkish-american politician.
“Uncommitted” was the last choice on each ballot.
In 2020, the Democratic primary was twice-delayed by the pandemic and held in August after Biden and Trump had locked up their nominations.
Biden won the Democratic primary with 84.87% of vote, trailed by two candidates who had suspended campaigning: Bernie Sanders at 11.54% and Tulsi Gabbard at 1.31%. The vote for uncommitted was 2.28%.
With only one opponent, Trump faced more dissent. He won with 78.42% of the vote over Rocky De La Fuente, who had 7.41%. The vote for uncommitted was 14.16%.
The “Vote Uncommitted CT” campaign started in earnest several weeks ago, motivated in part by the movement that began in Michigan’s presidential primary in February. More than 100,000 Democratic primary voters in Michigan went with uncommitted, ultimately nabbing two delegates.
A coalition of groups pushing for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza said they had dozens of volunteers urging voters in Connecticut to vote uncommitted in the Democratic Party. They surpassed their goal on Tuesday night of getting at least 6,000 people to vote uncommitted in the state.
Organizers noted that the push in Connecticut to protest against Biden was a bit easier than the Tuesday primary in New York since that state does not have an uncommitted ballot line. Activists in New York were urging voters to leave their ballots blank.
“I think any amount of votes against an incumbent should be a big warning sign. I think ignoring the Democratic base is a very dangerous strategy for them to take,” said Sam Pudlin, who was working with organizations on this effort.
Gov. Ned Lamont was dismissive of the campaign to cast votes for uncommitted in the Democratic primary to signify displeasure with Biden’s support for Israel after the terrorist attack by Hamas and Israel’s invasion of Gaza, calling it a waste of votes and time.
Other officials in the state argued that there won’t be much to extrapolate from a low-stakes primary, even with a potentially sizable protest vote.
“There is nothing contested. It’s a foregone conclusion,” Vinnie Mauro, the Democratic chair of New Haven, where Democrats typically get the most votes in statewide elections. “I don’t think anybody should read into anything as a litmus test.”