‘Uninstructed’: Biden protest vote in Wisconsin nets nearly 50K voters

Nearly 50,000 Democratic primary voters in Wisconsin voted for an “uninstructed” delegation Tuesday, the latest progressive-led protest vote over President Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

The “uninstructed” contingent — 48,000 votes, or about 8 percent — was more than 10 times larger than it was in 2020 and surpassed the general election margin between Biden and former President Trump in the state.

Various protest vote pushes in other states have garnered a total of 26 delegates, with the strongest showings in Michigan, Minnesota and Washington. The Wisconsin primary did not result in any delegates, as the uninstructed total did not surpass 15 percent support.

Just 2 percent of GOP primary voters selected the “uninstructed” delegation in Wisconsin.

Organizers more than doubled their stated goal for the campaign, set at 20,000 votes.

The movement has been backed by progressives as part of rising criticism against Biden’s response to the Israel-Hamas war. Critics have called on Biden to back a full cease-fire in the conflict, which he has refused, and to follow his own increasing criticism of the Israeli military operation in Gaza with action.

Activist group Listen to Wisconsin celebrated the performance after polls closed Tuesday.

“We had three weeks to pull off a presidential primary election. Lots of tiring days and sleepless nights. But we would do it over again in a heartbeat,” the group posted on social media. “Thank you Wisconsin for making your voices heard today!”

The group also reposted support from progressive commentator Nina Turner on Wednesday.

“Yesterday, over 47,000 voters in Wisconsin went to the polls and voted Uninstructed. President Biden won Wisconsin in 2020 by a little over 20,000 votes,” Turner wrote on social media. “This president must decide if loyalty to Netanyahu is worth delivering Trump the election in November. He must decide.”

The Biden administration has pressured the Israeli government to better consider civilian casualties and allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza, to little success. Famine has begun to set in for the region, the United Nations has warned, as U.S.-backed airdrops of aid fall short of needs.

The Biden administration is building a pier in Gaza in order to deliver aid, though the construction is estimated to take months, and the State Department said there are no plans for how exactly the aid will be distributed once the pier is built.