Vote this week in Michigan’s Primary Kucinich for Democrats, Paul for Republicans

There’s a lot of confusion about Michigan’s primary election to be held this week on Tuesday, January 15, instead of the usual early February race.  It’s pretty much agreed that moving the state primary forward was a mistake. The Democratic National Committee has stripped Michigan of its delegates. And John Edwards and Barack Obama pulled their names from the ballot. The Republican ballot will have a full slate of names, but national GOP officials will count only half of Michigan’s delegates because of the early primary date.

Dennis Kucinich

But don’t let the confusion stop you from having your say in this very important election year. You can make a statement about supporting candidates who are standing on principle. And DNC Chairman Howard Dean has said he is pretty sure the state’s Democratic delegates will be called to the national convention. Here’s what matters: As always, you must be registered to vote in the primary. If you are not already registered, it is too late to do so for the primary. But by all means get registered for the November election. You will vote at your usual voting location. Call the city clerk’s office in your city if you are unsure of where that is. The polling sites will be open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. At your polling site, you will be asked to produce a photo identification or to sign a form saying that you do not possess a photo identification. As a result of the early primary decision, voters must ask in writing for either a Democratic or a Republican ballot. There is no cross-over voting between parties in the primary the way you can do in the general election.  Voters do not have to be a registered party member and this choice does not register you as such. There are a few communities with issues on the ballot because the February election was canceled. They are: Cass County; Comstock Community Schools; the cities of South Haven, Parchment and Galesburg, and the townships of Bloomingdale, Cheshire, Lockport and Marcellus. The Democratic ballot will have the following choices: Hillary Clinton Christopher Dodd Mike Gravel Dennis Kucinich Uncommitted Write-in Senators Barack Obama and John Edwards will not be listed because they chose to pull out of the primary to follow national rules. (So did Joe Biden and Bill Richardson but they have since pulled out of the race. Dodd has also pulled out but remains on the ballot.) The Democratic Party in Michigan is urging supporters to vote uncommitted rather than writing in the names of Edwards or Obama. Ballots with their names — or any other names —written in will be discarded. (No potential write-in candidates did the required registration.) The uncommitted votes will be important when delegates are chosen to the Democratic National Convention where the party’s nominee will actually be named later this year.

Ron Paul

The Republican ballot will have the following choices: Sam Brownback Rudy Giuliani Mike Huckabee Duncan Hunter John McCain Ron Paul Mitt Romney Tom Tancredo Fred Thompson, Uncommitted. (Brownback and Tancredo have pulled out but their names are still on the ballot.) We urge Arab Americans to vote on principle in this primary for Ron Paul or Dennis Kucinich.  Both are against the war in Iraq.  Kucinich voted against the U.S.-Mexico fence and the militarization of the border.  He called for a “clear road map to legal status in the United States” for the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants in the country. Kucinich is in favor of direct talks with Iran and unsupportive of military action or sanctions against Iran. While Paul is not supportive of a path to legalization and is one of the least immigrant-friendly candidates,  he is the least aggressive and has said Iran has the right to nuclear weapons, he would talk with Iran, and would not engage in military actions against Iran.