Michigan’s primaries saw President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump win the race, solidifying their political vulnerabilities ahead of the November general election.
A “uncommitted” campaign organized by activists disillusioned with Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza was making headway, surpassing the 10,000-vote margin by which Trump won Michigan in 2016.
Trump has now swept the first five states on the Republican primary calendar, but early signs suggest he is struggling with influential voter blocs that have favored former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley in previous contests. Haley’s strongest performance came in areas with college towns like Ann Arbor and suburbs around Detroit and Grand Rapids.
The notable percentage of “uncommitted” voters could signal weakness with parts of the Democratic base in a state he can hardly afford to lose in November. Trump, meanwhile, has underperformed with suburban voters and people with college degrees, and faces a faction within his own party that believes he broke the law in one or more of the criminal cases against him.
Michigan has the largest concentration of Arab Americans in the nation, with more than 310,000 residents of Middle Eastern or North African ancestry.A grassroots effort began a few weeks ago to encourage voters to select “uncommitted” as a way to register objections to the death toll caused by Israel’s offensive. The “uncommitted” votes were hovering around the 15% mark needed to qualify for delegates statewide.Rep. Debbie Dingell, a Biden supporter in Michigan, has emphasized the importance of outreach to Arab American and Muslim communities and other coalitions critical for Democrats in November.
She highlighted the need to talk to young people and union halls in Washtenaw County, where Ann Arbor is located. Trump’s victory in Michigan over Haley, his last major primary challenger, was a “flashing warning sign” for Trump in November. Trump’s dominance of early states is unparalleled since 1976, and he has won support from most pockets of the Republican voting base, including evangelical voters, conservatives, and those living in rural areas.
However, Trump has struggled with college-educated voters, losing that bloc in South Carolina to Haley.Senator John Thune, the No. 2 Senate Republican who has been critical of the party’s standard-bearer, endorsed Trump for president on Sunday. Shaher Abdulrab, 35, an engineer from Dearborn, said he voted for Trump because he believes Arab Americans have more in common with Republicans than Democrats.
Haley has vowed to continue her campaign through at least Super Tuesday on March 5, pointing to a not-insignificant swath of Republican primary voters who have continued to support her despite Trump’s tightening grip on the GOP.
Two of Trump’s political committees raised just $13.8 million in January, while collectively spending more than they took in. Much of the money raised by Trump’s political committees went towards the campaign’s fundraising efforts.
(AP)
