Georgia progressives are encouraging voters in Georgia’s primary to send President Biden a message. The idea is for primary voters to leave their ballots blank in the presidential primary.
The Georgia primary is held on Tuesday, March 12, one week after Super Tuesday.
Progressives are angry with President Biden’s actions during the Israel-Hamas war. Georgia doesn’t have an uncommitted option on its ballots as Michigan does. Instead, Georgia voters can register their complaints against Biden by casting a blank ballot.
In the Michigan primary, about one in eight Democrat voters checked off the uncommitted option against Biden. That was enough to cause heads to turn. Will Georgia progressives find that kind of support for their leave-it-blank initiative?
This kind of action was taken during the U.S. Senate runoff in 2022. Republicans who were unwilling to cast a vote for Republican nominee Herschel Walker cast blank ballots, a non-vote for either Walker or Senator Raphael Warnock.
Biden is involved in ceasefire negotiations in the Israel-Hamas war but the Listen to Georgia Coalition wants an immediate ceasefire and for Biden to put a stop to supplying aid to Israel. The coalition’s Instagram page gives instructions on how voters can cast a blank ballot.
Are you a Georgia voter who objects to Biden’s policies on Gaza? Show your protest by turning in a BLANK BALLOT in the Democratic Presidential Preference Primary!
Steps:
1. REQUEST A DEMOCRATIC BALLOT
2. COMPLETE THE ON-SCREEN PROMPTS BUT LEAVE THE CHOICES BLANK
3. SUBMIT YOUR BALLOT TO THE MACHINE
4. POST A PHOTO WITH YOUR PEACH STICKER USING THE HASHTAGS #LISTENTOGEORGIA #LEAVEITBLANK
There is a hashtag campaign being organized for social media.
Georgia’s first Palestinian-American legislator, State Rep. Ruwa Romman, is excited. According to Romman, the initiative is “spreading like wildfire” among Georgia progressives.
“Phone banking organizers that have been calling members of Congress are now shifting to this,” the Duluth Democrat said. “It’s completely grassroots. I’ve never seen anything like it and hope that no matter the outcome people listen.”
Flyers reading “Tell Biden, ceasefire now! Leave it blank on March 12” are circulating.
Is it enough to make a splash on primary day? Georgia Democrats who support Biden aren’t worried. They expect Biden to easily win the primary race. He has two challengers on the ballot – Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) and self-help guru Marianne Williamson. Williamson recently unsuspended her campaign, justifying that decision by claiming she can beat Biden if her message gets out. I know.
Biden is scheduled to hold a campaign rally in Atlanta on Saturday.
Georgia Republicans welcome the tension in the Democrat Party. Biden barely won the state with fewer than 12,000 votes in 2020. Biden and his administration have focused on Georgia like a laser in hopes of keeping the state in November.
It will be interesting to see if this movement makes any headway in Georgia. The ceasefire protesters are everywhere, it seems. Jill Biden is getting heckled on the campaign trail, though there were not any reports of that happening in Atlanta over the weekend. It happened to her in Arizona.
Senator Raphael Warnock is the senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. He was delivering a sermon on Sunday when about 20 pro-Hamas people silently protested as he spoke. Last week he called for a negotiated ceasefire on the Senate floor. Progressives criticized Warnock for supporting additional aid to Israel and for supporting Biden’s management of America’s response to the Israel-Hamas war.
The protesters identified themselves on social media as students at Atlanta University Center schools. They stood silently and took off their jackets and coats to show their shirts that read, “Ceasefire now” on the front and “Stop arming Israel” on the back. They remained standing for a short time and then exited via the middle aisle, still silent. Warnock stopped his sermon to acknowledge them. He said he would be willing to talk to them after the church service. Warnock said, “I want to thank God for the students and the young folk who are here I wish they’d hang out so we can talk after church. Let them know that they’re welcome to stay; let’s talk after church.”
That scene in the church sounds civilized, not something that is usually said of progressive protests. Democrats have their hands full with trying to manage far-left terrorist sympathizers who wish to see Israel vanish and don’t seem to have a problem with antisemitism. They are trying to normalize hatred of Jews as we haven’t seen in this country. Our country is definitely not going in the right direction.
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