Gaza activists encourage voters to write ‘Ceasefire’ on US primary ballots

• The initiative targets progressives aiming to send a message to the White House.
• The campaign aims to send a message to the White House.
• A separate campaign is urging supporters to write Biden’s name on the ballot.

Peace activists are urging US voters considering candidates for November’s presidential election to express their dissatisfaction with Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war by writing ‘ceasefire’ on their ballots.

The ‘Vote Ceasefire‘ campaign, led by a coalition of local anti-war groups, provides Americans with a means to protest against the mounting toll of civilian deaths in Gaza resulting from Israel’s response to the deadly October 7 Hamas attacks.

The initiative specifically targets progressives who aim to send a message to the White House. Voters in New Hampshire will choose their preferred candidate in either the Democratic or Republican nominating contests on Tuesday.

“For the last three months, as the world has watched the war in Gaza continue to worsen, the Biden administration has refused all demands to call for a ceasefire and to end US support for Israel,” the campaign posted on X, formerly Twitter.

“So we’re taking our fight to the place Democrats care about the most — the polls. While Joe Biden will almost certainly win the Democratic nomination later this year, he must know that the road to get there will be long and hard if he refuses to listen to his constituents.”

The October 7 attack resulted in the death of around 1,140 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to a source. In response, Israel has carried out a relentless air, land, and sea offensive that has killed at least 25,295 people in Gaza, around 70 percent of them women, children, and adolescents, according to the latest toll issued Monday by the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.

Vote Ceasefire purpose:

Organizers of “Vote Ceasefire” have not indicated what kind of turnout would constitute a success for the campaign, and it is unclear how much effect it will have. Biden himself is not on the ballot and is largely ignoring the contest after New Hampshire officials clashed with the national party over scheduling.

A separate campaign is urging supporters to write Biden’s name on the ballot in the same manner that “Vote Ceasefire” is promoting. The outcome will not affect the nomination process in any case, as the Democratic National Committee has declared the New Hampshire primary illegitimate. Biden is expected to win the nomination comfortably.

“I’m doing this as over 80 percent of Democratic voters are in favor of a ceasefire for Gaza and are opposed to the continuing slaughter of civilian men, women, and children in Palestine, with the United States-supplied weapons,” campaign volunteer and former Democratic state representative Chris Balch said in a video posted to X.

“A way to help create a ceasefire would be to vote for a candidate who has called for one from the very beginning,” she posted in response to the campaign’s social media statements.

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