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| AP |
Biden defeated Minnesota representative Dean Phillips, the only significant rival remaining in the Democratic primaries. However, Democrats were also closely monitoring the results of the uncommitted vote, as Michigan has become the epicenter of dissatisfied members of Biden's coalition who helped him win the state—and the presidency—in 2020.
The number of uncommitted votes has already surpassed the 10,000-margin by which Trump won the state in 2016, exceeding the goal set by organizers of this year's protest.
As for Trump, he completed a clean sweep of the first five states on the Republican primary agenda. His victory in Michigan over his last remaining rival, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley, came after the former president outpaced her by 20 percentage points on Saturday in South Carolina, where Haley served as governor. Trump's campaign aims to reach the 1,215 delegates needed for the Republican nomination by mid-March.
Both campaign teams closely watch Tuesday's results for more than just an anticipated victory. For Biden, the large number of uncommitted voters could mean he is in serious trouble with the Democratic base in a state that cannot afford to lose in November. Trump, on the other hand, has underperformed among suburban and college-educated voters and faces a faction within his own party that believes the former president violated the law in one or more of the criminal cases against him.
Biden had already secured comfortable wins in South Carolina, Nevada, and New Hampshire. The victory in New Hampshire was through a write-in campaign, as he did not formally appear on the ballot after the state broke the national party rules by moving ahead of South Carolina, which had been designated as the first state for the Democratic primaries.
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Both White House officials and Biden's campaign traveled to Michigan in recent weeks to speak with community leaders about the conflict between Israel and Hamas and how the president has addressed the conflict. However, these leaders, along with organizers of the uncommitted vote campaign, have not changed their positions.
The campaign, which had been encouraging voters to select uncommitted as a way to register objections to Biden's handling of the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict, has been Biden's most significant political challenge in the early contests. This campaign, which began in earnest just a few weeks ago, has been endorsed by officials such as Democratic representative Rashida Tlaib, the first Palestinian-American woman in Congress.