Rep. Ilhan Omar didn't vote in Minnesota primary, says uncommitted voters are 'angry and frustrated'

Rep. Ilhan Omar didn't vote in Minnesota's presidential primary this week. But she told Politico that she understood where the scores of voters were coming from when they marked their ballots "uncommitted" on Tuesday.

Nearly 46,000 Minnesotans voted that way, many to protest President Joe Biden's handling of the Israel-Hamas war, which has seen massive civilian casualties. Progressive activists originally set a goal of earning about 5,000 votes in the uncommitted column before blowing past that figure.

"People are angry and frustrated and sad. They want the president to change his policies," Omar told Politico. "They've tried marching. They've tried writing letters. They've tried calling and now they're using their voice at the ballot box."

The uncommitted movement originated in Michigan, where more than 100,000 citizens cast such a ballot, representing about 13% of the turnout in the Democratic contest. Here in Minnesota, the share of uncommitted voters represented about 19% of turnout in the DFL's presidential primary.

Omar's Democratic colleague in the Minnesota delegation, U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips, dropped out of the presidential race after earning 8% of the primary vote in his home state. Phillips endorsed Biden soon after.