Protesters urged Pa. Dems to cast ‘uncommitted’ votes against Joe Biden. The primary showed an uptick in write-ins.

Preliminary primary voting results from Pennsylvania’s largest Democratic counties showed a higher percentage of write-in votes on the Democratic presidential party line than in the 2020 presidential primary, a possible sign of protest votes cast against President Joe Biden.

A total of 60,178 voters cast write-in ballots across the state in the Democratic primary, according to the Associated Press. The AP does not normally track write-in votes, but in a statement Wednesday evening it cited “the large number of write-in votes in Pennsylvania’s Democratic presidential primary race.”

The write-in votes accounted for 5.6% of the total Democratic electorate. Biden still overwhelmingly won with 86.9% of the vote, while Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips garnered 6.4% after suspending his campaign last month.

Progressive organizers mounted a campaign urging voters to write in “uncommitted” as a protest vote over Biden’s ongoing support to Israel in its monthslong war against Hamas that has claimed tens of thousands of Palestinian lives. The group known as Uncommitted PA hoped to send a message to Biden in a critical swing state he’ll need in November.

» READ MORE: ‘We’re doing this again’: The 2024 presidential rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump is officially underway in Pa.

But unlike Michigan and some other states, Pennsylvania doesn’t offer an “uncommitted” option on the ballot so it’s impossible to know what voters wrote in as of Wednesday. Typically, write-in responses can take days or weeks for counties to report.

The increase in write-in votes could be a symptom of larger voter frustration with the options at the top of the ballot.

In the six Pennsylvania counties with the most registered Democrats, the number of write-in votes counted in Tuesday’s Democratic presidential primary far surpassed the 2020 figures, as of midday Wednesday.

Despite far fewer votes overall in this primary election, approximately 37,000 write-ins have been counted in Philadelphia, Montgomery, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Allegheny Counties, compared with just 13,000 in 2020 when there was no protest vote organized.

Philadelphia had nearly six times the number of write-in votes for the Democratic nominee for president as it did in 2020. With about 96% of the expected vote in, the total number of votes counted in Tuesday’s Democratic presidential primary in Philadelphia was half the total number recorded in 2020.

Some voters might have written in other names, like Mickey Mouse, or Gritty, instead of “uncommitted.” And there’s some precedent for Democrats casting protest votes. In 2012, the last incumbent Democratic primary in Pennsylvania, almost 20,000 people wrote in votes instead of voting for then-President Barack Obama.

The total number of “uncommitted” votes statewide may never be calculated. The Philadelphia elections board attributes write-in votes to people, so if a voter wrote “uncommitted” election officials will likely mark the vote in that race as void, City Commissioner Seth Bluestein said in a text message

But the spike in write-ins on the Democratic side greatly overshadows GOP write-ins, likely reflecting, at least in part, the work of the Uncommitted Pennsylvania movement. The group had set a goal of getting 40,000 “uncommitted” votes statewide. Biden won Pennsylvania by a little more than 80,000 votes in 2020.

“We have been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and dedication of our volunteers who have engaged directly with voters today, either at the polls or through phone and text banking.” Uncommitted PA organizer Shalah Ramadan said. “Today’s efforts are a testament to the growing support for the Uncommitted anti-war movement in the United States and growing desire for meaningful action by our President to change course in Gaza.”

Abandon Biden, an organization that seeks to mobilize Muslim voters and allies, had encouraged voters to use the phrase “No Joe” as a write-in vote to protest Biden’s stance on Gaza.

State Sen. Sharif Street (D., Philadelphia), the chair of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, pushed back on the criticism of Biden from these groups and called on voters to recognize the stakes of the general election rematch with former President Donald Trump.

“As a Muslim American, I know that President Biden has my back and will fight for our community,” Street said in a statement Wednesday. “While Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans threaten our way of life, President Biden has stood up to protect our reproductive rights, economic opportunity, and democracy. This is the choice we face at the ballot box this November.”

Pennsylvania voters overall have split over the Biden administration’s handling of the conflict in the Middle East.

In an April Fox News poll, 24% of likely voters said they thought the administration was too supportive of the Israelis and 23% said it was too supportive of the Palestinians. The largest number, 40%, said Biden’s approach was about right. Democrats were more likely than Republicans to think the White House was too supportive of the Israelis.

At the polls in Northwest Philadelphia on Tuesday, Rachel Elfenbein, who voted for Biden in 2020, said she was inspired by how the “uncommitted” vote won two Democratic delegates in Michigan in February.

“It’s time for him to shift policies,” Elfenbein said of Biden. “Pennsylvania is a swing state and we can use our power as voters to let him know how disappointed we are with his ongoing support of this war.”

Still, Elfenbein said if it comes down to Biden or Trump in the November elections, she’ll back Biden.

In West Philly, Tea Jackson, 40, said she voted uncommitted because she’s “tired of the lesser of two evils.”

“It’s definitely to send a message,” said Jackson, who is considering voting for a third party in November.

Another uncommitted voter, Ripley Shultz, 30, said she didn’t see much of a difference between the Biden and Trump presidencies, noting she felt both failed to support new immigrants.

At least one Democratic elected official hinted that he voted “uncommitted” in the primary.

State Sen. Nikil Saval said at his Arch Street Presbyterian Church polling station Tuesday that he was “committed to defeating Trump.” But he declined to answer directly if he voted for Biden.

He said Biden could boost his standing with young and progressive voters by expanding his domestic focus on climate, education, and affordable housing — and by changing course on Gaza. He called it “hugely important,” to defeat Trump in November.

» READ MORE: More than 150,000 Republicans voted for Nikki Haley in Pa.’s presidential primary

With six months until the general election, there were also some signs of fractures among Republican Party voters in Tuesday’s primary.

Former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who dropped out of the race in March, received about 16% of Republican primary votes, with her largest share in Philadelphia’s suburban counties, including Montgomery County, where she received nearly a quarter of the Republican primary vote.

Correction: This story has been updated to clarify that Philadelphia will likely mark “uncommitted” votes in the presidential race as void rather than the whole ballot.

Staff writers Michelle Myers, Nate File, Katie Bernard, and Abraham Gutman contributed to this article.