In last April’s midterms, Democrats in Madison made it clear that Biden’s policy on the war in Gaza did not work for them. Over 14,000 Democrats in Dane County voted to send an uninstructed delegate – one not bound to support then presidential candidate Joe Biden in the Democratic National Convention – in a form of organized protest against the party’s handling of the war in Gaza. The total uninstructed vote in the state was more than double the margin that Biden beat Trump by in the 2020 election.
Before the April primary, the Milwaukee based non-profit “Listen to Wisconsin” waged a grassroots campaign to raise awareness of the uninstructed ballot option and urge voters to select it as a form of protest. The vote uninstructed movement hinged on Biden’s policy on the war in Gaza, and not his fitness as a candidate according to the organization’s website.
In theory, this uninstructed voting bloc has the power to swing Wisconsin in November against the Democrats by throwing away their votes again. Of course, voting uninstructed in the presidential primary does not equate to abandoning Harris in the general election, supporting Harris over Trump is an obvious calculation for April’s uninstructed voters, but it does mean that Harris should not take her growing base of support in Wisconsin – particularly among younger, more leftist Democrats – for granted.
Until August, Trump led Wisconsin in the NYT national polling average. Since Biden’s departure from the race in late July, Harris’ polling numbers have been steadily rising in Wisconsin. Now she leads Trump by two points in the state according to the same national polling average, and her appeal among young voters is likely a major part of that lead. In battleground states like Wisconsin, the election may well be decided by young, more leftist voters.
Harris’ campaign knows this and has recently ramped up messaging to young voters, but she has yet to make any clear policy concessions to a voter base that has clearly voiced their dissatisfaction with the Biden-Harris’ administrations’ stance on a number of issues, especially the war in Gaza.
Those who voted uninstructed in April should not allow themselves to be swept up in the energy and excitement of the Harris campaign and forget that they were brought to the primaries not by an enthusiasm to support the Democratic nominee, but by an imperative to voice their dissatisfaction with their party’s handling of the war in Gaza. On account of her age, race and gender, Harris appeals to young Democrats in ways that Biden never could, and though she has made an effort in her campaign to downplay the importance of those qualities, they are nonetheless critical and exciting differences between the two candidates. But the policy differences between Harris and Biden are far less stark.
So far, Harris’ most significant departure from the current administration’s policy comes in the form of an alteration to the Biden administration’s proposed tax plan. If elected, Harris would reduce the proposed capital gains tax from 39.6% to 28% for those earning more than $1 million a year. The change would still be a net increase of 8% in capital gains taxes for those earning more than $1 million a year. Aside from that, Harris has hardly diverged from Biden administration’s policies, and Democrats should not treat her stance on the war in Gaza — which is fundamentally the same as Biden’s — with any less indignation than they did during the primaries.
Harris likely needs the support of young voters in Wisconsin to secure the state and this voter base cannot allow themselves to be taken for granted should Harris win. Harris has said that she supports a cease-fire, according to ABC11 — as has Biden, according to NPR — and that brokering a peace deal is a top priority for her, but the remarks of both Biden and Harris have largely been smoke in the wind in terms of meaningful policy decisions like continuing arms and aid supply to Israel. Harris has stated that she would not make any policy changes regarding the war in Gaza should she become Commander in Chief in an August interview with CNN.
Young voters have a lot to be excited about in Harris’ campaign, but their support of her should not be unconditional. Tens of thousands of Wisconsin Democrats have demonstrated their unhappiness with the party’s handling of the war in Gaza, with prolonging and funding the war in Gaza for nearly a year without any kind of sustained ceasefire. Harris and Biden both have a track record of playing lip-service to concerned voters regarding the war in Gaza, but not following their statements up with meaningful policy changes.
In the same August CNN interview, Harris said that a deal must be brokered immediately, though she does not yet support any policy changes, and voters have to hold her to that. If everyone who voted uninstructed in Wisconsin’s Democratic primary chose not to support Harris in the general election, she would likely lose Wisconsin.
Clearly, though, the uninstructed vote did little to sway Democratic policy makers. Wisconsin Democrats are now uniquely positioned to both have a decisive impact in Harris’ campaign for president and to hold her accountable for campaign promises and brokering a ceasefire in Gaza. If Harris continues to support the Biden administration’s policies in Israel after the election, then she will have failed tens of thousands of Wisconsin Democrats, the very people who she needs to secure the state in November.
