President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event in Scranton, Pa., Tuesday, April 16, 2024. Some Oregon Democrats say they will not vote for Biden in the state's upcoming primary, to protest his handling of the war in Gaza.
Matt Rourke / AP
As the presidential primary continues across the country, hundreds of thousands of people are voting “Uncommitted” in presidential primaries as part of a movement protesting President Joe Biden’s handling of the conflict in Gaza.
Now some Oregonians are looking to send Biden a clear message in next month’s primary: Barring an immediate and permanent cease-fire in Gaza, he cannot count on their vote in November.
“If [Biden] doesn’t listen to the people who are voting for him, he’s going to lose us,” said Yasmine Barghouty, 44, of Tigard, who is Palestinian American.
The movement has found momentum in about two dozen states so far, and Oregon is one of the latest. Organizers believe they represent a significant voting bloc in the state, where 994,493 voters are registered Democrats, according to data released this month by the secretary of state’s office.
Barghouty and others are calling for the Biden administration to stop providing military aid to Israel and open the borders to Gaza for food, medicine and water to reach those who are suffering. They argue that their support is not something Biden can afford to lose in a close race with former President Donald Trump.
“This should bring fear to the administration,” said Barghouty, whose parents fled the Palestinian territories during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
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According to NPR, other states have reported tens of thousands of voters selecting either “Uncommitted,” “No preference,” or “Noncommitted delegate.” That includes more than 100,000 in Michigan, which has nearly 400,000 Arab American residents, according to the Arab American Institute.
It’s unclear how many people plan to vote uncommitted in Oregon. At least 31,000 Arab Americans lived in the state in 2022, according to U.S. Census data.
Kai McMurtry, a spokesperson for the Uncommitted Oregon coalition, said the group launched its effort earlier this month and is not currently counting vote pledges.
“Our votes are a precious thing, and we vote to align with our moral beliefs,” said Maxine Fookson, 70, a retired pediatric nurse practitioner from Portland, who plans to write in “Uncommitted.” She added, “The Biden administration is not living up to that. He’s not earning our vote.”
Protests calling for a cease-fire are spreading across Oregon and the nation as tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed or wounded and many more starve. The war began after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing about 1,200 people, most of whom were civilians.
In Oregon, protestors have filled local government meetings and walked out of school. Events have occurred on college campuses and courthouse steps, organizers say.
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On Monday, 52 people were arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct after blocking lanes of Interstate 5 between Eugene and Springfield, some waving Palestinian flags. It was part of a series of protests across the country, including one that shut down the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.
Protestors say disruption is necessary to force policymakers to act.
“What President Biden is doing is making a huge gamble by not changing the path and not changing the direction,” said Loay Abu-Husein, a 57-year-old Palestinian American man from Albany.
Abu-Husein’s family was originally from the West Bank, but they were displaced during the Six-Day War in 1967. He’s long been a registered Democrat, but lately he’s wondered if it is moral to vote for Biden. However, he said of Biden, “It’s not too late. He can still salvage this situation.”