Above photo: Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images.
The remaining states that allow “uncommitted” votes.
And where to find the biggest campaigns.
As Super Tuesday returns come in, it appears that almost 20% of Democratic presidential primary voters in Minnesota have cast ballots for “uncommitted,” ensuring at least one convention delegate. About 12% of North Carolina voters opted for “no preference.”
Campaigns in Minnesota, Massachusetts, Colorado, North Carolina and other states with March 5 primaries asked voters to cast a protest vote over President Joe Biden’s support of Israel’s war on Gaza.
The uncommitted push began with the Listen to Michigan campaign, which urged voters to fill in the uncommitted bubble to “strongly reject Biden’s funding war and genocide in Gaza.” Launched just a few weeks before the state’s February 27 primary, it drew support from Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), former Michigan Rep. Andy Levin, and the state chapters of the Democratic Socialists of America and Our Revolution. Over 100,000 Michigan Democratic voters — around 13% of the primary electorate — voted uncommitted.
After Super Tuesday, 17 remaining states and territories — listed below — will have an uncommitted or equivalent option on their Democratic presidential ballot. Primaries to watch are Washington state (March 12) and Wisconsin (April 2), where uncommitted campaigns are gaining momentum.
Not every state has the option of voting uncommitted. But there are other ways voters can lodge protest votes if they choose to. Below is a full list of all the remaining nominating contests, the different ways protest votes can be cast in each state or territory and information about state-level uncommitted campaigns.
States With An “Uncommitted” Option
These upcoming nominating contests include an “uncommitted” option on the Democratic presidential ballot.
- March 5–12: Northern Mariana Islands
- March 6: Hawaii
- March 12: Washington*, Democrats Abroad
Campaign to Watch: The Vote Uncommitted WA campaign is asking Washington state voters to select “Uncommitted Delegates” to “strongly reject the Biden Administration’s funding of war and genocide in Gaza” and demand “a dramatic change in policy.” The Seattle chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (whose national body has endorsed “Uncommitted” in all remaining primaries), is phone-banking for the coalition, and the largest labor union in the state, the 50,000-member UFCW Local 3000, has also endorsed an “Uncommitted” vote.
- March 19: Kansas
- March 23: Missouri
- April 2: Connecticut, Rhode Island, Wisconsin* (called “Uninstructed Delegate”)
Campaign to Watch: The Listen to Wisconsin campaign, modeled on Listen to Michigan, urges Wisconsin voters to “[send] Biden a clear message in the April 2nd presidential primary that he can count us out” by filling out the “uninstructed” bubble in protest of “Biden’s funding of the war and genocide in Gaza.”
- April 6: Alaska
- April 13: Wyoming
- May 14: Maryland
- May 21: Kentucky
- May 23: Idaho
- June 4: Montana (called “No Preference”), New Jersey, New Mexico
- June 8: Virgin Islands
States That Allow Any Write-In Vote
These upcoming Democratic nominating contests do not have an “uncommitted” option, but do allow a write-in for any candidate. In the initial returns, just the total percentage of write-ins will be reported. Later, the write-in candidates allowed under state law — typically limited to real, living people — will be individually tallied and posted.
- May 21: Oregon
- June 4: Washington, D.C.
States That Only Allow Preselected Candidates
Some states and territories allow Democratic voters to choose only from among the presidential candidates named on the ballot (or, if write-ins are allowed, they are restricted to registered candidates). In these upcoming contests, voters must choose between the existing options or mailing back a blank ballot.
- March 12: Georgia, Mississippi
- March 19: Arizona, Illinois, Ohio
- March 23: Louisiana
- March 30: North Dakota
- April 2: New York
- April 23: Pennsylvania
- April 28: Puerto Rico
- May 14: Nebraska, West Virginia
- June 4: South Dakota
- June 8: Guam
No Primary
The Democratic parties of Florida and Delaware canceled their 2024 presidential primaries and assigned all delegates to Biden pursuant to state law.
Special thanks to Josh Cohen of the Ettingermentum newsletter and Renée Paradis, legal counsel to Listen to Michigan, for providing research assistance. Riley Roliff, Anna Busalacchi and Andrew Ancheta contributed fact-checking. For more information on state-by-state rules, see Ettingermentum.
This guide will be updated with new information about uncommitted campaigns. If you would like to alert us to a campaign that is not currently listed, please email letters@inthesetimes.com with the subject line “Uncommitted campaign.”