Presidents Joe Biden and Donald Trump ran up the score by dominating the nominating contests in Connecticut, New York, Wisconsin, and Rhode Island yesterday.
But voter turnout and behavior indicate less than complete satisfaction. Here’s what we noticed about yesterday’s contests based on early returns.
Voters sign in to vote at the Cerebral Palsy Center in Mount Pleasant, Wis., on Apr. 2, 2024. Lawrence Wilson/The Epoch Times
Wisconsin Amends Constitution for Election Integrity
Wisconsin voters approved two constitutional amendments aimed at safeguarding the state’s elections from outside influence.
The first amendment states that “private donations and grants may not be applied for, accepted, expended, or used in connection with the conduct of any primary, election, or referendum.”
The second changes the state’s Constitution to ensure that “only election officials designated by law may perform tasks in the conduct of primaries, elections, and referendums.”
The initiative was motivated in part by the widespread use of private, out-of-state contributions during the 2020 presidential contest, particularly from a foundation created by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. That group contributed more than $400 million “to supporting election infrastructure” in jurisdictions across the country that year.
Republicans mostly favored the measures while Democrats largely opposed them.
Democrat voters are not all sold on Biden
The Democrat protest vote, “uncommitted” is still alive, with a percentage of voters in each state giving President Biden the cold shoulder.
The option to vote for “uncommitted” appeared on the Connecticut and Rhode Island ballots.
In Wisconsin, Democrat voters were urged by Palestinian activists to vote for “uninstructed delegation.”
In Rhode Island, 15 percent of voters cast an uncommitted vote, 10 percent in Wisconsin.
In New York casting a blank vote is the same as uncommitted. But New York normally takes weeks to count blank votes, so results will not be known immediately.
Protest organizers are likely spiking the numbers, though it is much easier to vote “uncommitted” when the choice appears on the ballot vs. having to write it in.
Republican voters are not all sold on Trump
A percentage of Republicans in each April 2 primary state voted for candidates who are no longer in the running. Mostly Nikki Haley.
In Rhode Island, nearly 11 percent of Republicans went with Ms. Haley and 2 percent voted uncommitted. In Connecticut, 18, and in New York, 13 percent.
In Wisconsin, Ms. Haley gained 13 percent, or nearly 50,000 votes. And more than 16,400 voted “uninstructed” and Ron DeSantis, who had only hundreds of votes in other states, received nearly 13,000 votes.
Clearly, there is a large number of Republican voters President Trump has yet to convince.
Voter turnout lower than usual for a general election year
Voter turnout in the four states holding presidential primaries was down significantly from the 2020 primary season, with numbers more closely resembling participation in a mid-term election year.
In 2016, the last year when both major parties held a presidential primary in New York, some just under 2.9 million voters took part. This year, projections based on early returns indicate that the total number of voters could be less than 700,000.
In Wisconsin, a state in which any registered voter may take part in either the Democratic or the Republican primary, more than 1.5 million voters participated in the 2020 primary election.
This year, projections based on early returns indicate that the total may be less than 1.2 million.
The below-average turnout may be attributable to the virtual certainty that Presidents Biden and Trump will be the nominees of their respective parties. Inclement weather may also have affected voter participation, as it rained throughout the day in Wisconsin and in the Northeast.
Presidential primaries have yet to be held in 12 U.S. states and territories and the District of Columbia.
—Lawrence Wilson, Beth Brelje, Nathan Worcester, and Juliet Fairly
(L–R) Firefighters Rodrigo Pineda, William Dorsey, and Lt. Julio Valdes of the Eagle Pass Fire Department recover a body from the Rio Grande river in Eagle Pass, Texas, on March 1, 2024. Sergio Flores/AFP via Getty Images
HIDDEN TOLL OF BORDER CRISIS
Mass illegal immigration is pushing rescue crews in the small Texas border town of Eagle Pass close to their breaking point.
The Rio Grande, the mighty waterway separating the United States and Mexico, has become a river of misery for Eagle Pass’ first responders and local residents alike.
As illegal immigration along the border has reached unprecedented heights, so too have drownings of those trying to cross the river. The medics and firefighters who respond to this have suffered a psychological toll according to Eagle Pass Fire Chief Manuel Mello III.
“Chief, I’m sick and tired of going out to the river and pulling bodies out” is one line that Chief Mello reported hearing from his medics as he described how much the border crisis is affecting his department’s rescue workers.
These first responders are grappling with record numbers of drowned men, women, and children who perish while crossing from Mexico into the United States.
The chief’s crews are risking their lives in nightmarish scenarios with unidentified people who are sick, hurt, or dead—not just along the river, but also on nearby roads, ranches, and railways.
Aside from the psychological toll, the increase in immigration-related emergencies has also had the effect of forcing residents in the community to sometimes be left waiting for medical care and other emergency services.
“There are days it seems that the ambulance wails never stop,” the chief told a Congressional committee recently.
People in the community also hear those sirens. Some see the bodies washed up along the riverbank. And they feel the impact.
But Chief Mello says first responders have gotten little in the way of financial or other assistance from the federal government.
He’s seeking funds to cover costs from hundreds of ambulance runs carrying illegal aliens. He also is trying to secure counseling for first responders who are coping with stress and trauma that linger long after they go off duty.
While dealing with death is an accepted part of an emergency responder’s job, Eagle Pass medics are overdosing on gruesome encounters that are rare occurrences elsewhere—such as drowned children.
“The mental impact will take a long time to heal if we do not get help for them soon,” the chief told federal lawmakers.
Above all, Chief Mello would like to see U.S. leaders stem the tide of illegal immigrants. That would be much better than throwing money at the consequences, he said.
“There needs to be some unity within the federal government so we can actually stop it,” the chief said.
In hopes that the right people finally hear—and heed—his pleas, Chief Mello shared his story with Congress in brief testimony earlier this year. He also gave a two-hour interview to The Epoch Times about the challenges that his department faces.
But the chief also emphasized that the problems extend beyond Eagle Pass. “It’s not just me with this issue,” Chief Mello said. “It’s every single fire department along the border.”
—Janice Hisle and Joseph Lord
BOOKMARKS
Gov. Larry Hogan, the popular Republican moderate who served as Maryland’s chief executive for eight years, is leading Democrat opponents in his bid to be the state’s next senator, The Epoch Times’ Joseph Lord reports. A new poll reiterated the findings of past polls, most of which have shown a clear and strong lead for Hogan.
A federal judge has struck down an attempted Biden administration rule that sought to force states to cut carbon dioxide emissions on their roads, The Epoch Times’ Tom Ozimek reported. The rule will be subject to further litigation, and is currently blocked only in 21 states rather than nationwide.
Immigration detainers have been lodged on 215 illegal aliens caught on video storming a U.S. barricade, The Epoch Times’ Tom Ozimek reports. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed in an April 2 email to The Epoch Times that border agents had issued the detainers on those involved in the March 21 incident. The illegal immigrants are facing deportation proceedings.
An American tradition that endured for 100 years is on life support, an article by The Washington Post contends. That tradition, the presidential first pitch for the Washington Nationals baseball team, was last practiced by President Barack Obama. Neither former President Donald Trump nor President Joe Biden have continued the tradition, leaving its fate uncertain. The article comes after Biden again failed to partake in the ceremony during the opening game on April 1.
Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), a contender for Arizona’s Senate seat in 2024, raised $7.5 million for his bid in the first quarter of 2024, The Epoch Times’ Austin Alonzo reports. The candidate will likely be facing off against former gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, whose narrow loss in 2022 drew national attention.
There are “shocking” and “horrific” admissions nestled among emails leaked from a prevalent transgender association, The Epoch Times’ Brad Jones reports. Chief among these are admissions from doctors showing that minor children and their parents were not given informed consent before being subjected to hormonal and hormone-blocking treatments.
