From ‘Uncommitted’ to ‘Leave It Blank’

According to The Detroit News columnist Nolan Finley, former Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Lon Johnson and longtime Democratic strategist David Kramer are encouraging dissatisfied Democrats to leave the Senate race blank rather than vote for El-Sayed or Republican Mike Rogers.

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Both supported U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens in the Democratic primary and argue that El-Sayed has failed to earn the trust of voters concerned about his positions on Israel and associations with controversial figures. They also point out that he won the nomination with less than 50% of the Democratic vote during the primary.

Their message? Vote Democratic elsewhere, but give El-Sayed the silent treatment.

Déjà Vu, Democrat Style

If you think the strategy sounds familiar, you would be right. In 2024, dissatisfied Michigan Democrats launched the “Uncommitted” movement during the primary against then-President Joe Biden over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

More than 100,000 Michigan Democratic primary voters, roughly 13%, selected “uncommitted” instead of Biden.

Among those supporting that protest? Abdul El-Sayed himself.

Now, more than two and a half years later, El-Sayed is on the receiving end of a similar political protest.

Same Party, Different Protest

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There is one important difference. The 2024 campaign involved an actual “uncommitted” option in a presidential primary. The current effort asks voters to skip the Senate contest entirely in November’s general election.

In a political twist that may not be lost on voters, El-Sayed once supported sending a message to his own party by withholding a vote from its presidential frontrunner. Now, some fellow Democrats want to send him the same message. Michigan Democrats may have changed their target, but the playbook is familiar.

And with some Democrats still undecided about whether to support El-Sayed, the question is whether those voters will ultimately fall in line with their party or leave his name unchecked on Election Day.

University of Michigan sophomore Jacob Reich is one of many Jewish Michiganders who are still undecided in the Senate race.

He wants to support the Democratic candidate, but he and many of his classmates need clear answers from Dr. El-Sayed on the issues that matter deeply to them as Jewish voters.

Jacob is inviting Dr. El-Sayed to directly engage with his concerns and affirm his nonnegotiable needs to earn his vote.

— Nonnegotiable Michigan (@NonnegotiableMI) October 16, 2026

Absentee ballots are already being returned in Michigan. The state’s required early in-person voting period runs from Saturday, Oct. 24, through Sunday, Nov. 1.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.