So, does anyone know how a write-in campaign in MI might work? If one voter writes "Obama" and another writes "Barack Obama" and a third writes "Barak Obamma" do those all get tallyed as the same guy, or as three separate candidates?

Why didn't Clinton remove her name from the ballot?

And since she didn't, if she wins against "Uncommitted", will those delegates count? If they do, this seems totally wrong.

No canidate has signed up for the write in votes to be counted, so they won't be counted. Supporters of Obama, Edwards and Richardson need to vote uncommited. DK,Dodd,Gravel and Clinton are the only ones on the ballot.

No canidate has signed up for the write in votes to be counted, so they won't be

You have to sign up for your write-ins to be counted? Sign up with whom?

If they so much as mention their "victory" in Michigan without being asked about it, they should be mocked relentlessly.

What happens if Uncommitted gets more than 30%?

What happens if Uncommitted gets more than 30%?

I was rather wondering the same thing. At the risk of seeming insufferably snarky, it cannot be a good thing for Sen Clinton that she is running essentially unopposed in MI but cannot poll above 50%.

I doubt any candidate/nominee would dare throw the delegates under the bus especialy from MI and FL. Not a chance.

Does MI have an internet primary again this year? I lived in Ann Arbor (go Blue!) in 2004 and voted in the primary online and I thought it was a remarkably easy, convenient way to hold an election.

The person running for the office must sign up to have the write-in ballots counted. No one has signed up. DK also tried to have his name taken off the ballot but filed wrong paperwork. This whole thing has been orchestrated by all the higher up clinton people, to change it from the usual caucus (which Edwards would have most likely won) to a primary. He haven't had a primary in this state since the republicans crossed over and put in wallace as our state winner in 1972. The national party gave the state dems 30 days to change or lose all delegates, the national party has also refused to book hotel rooms for the convention. There are some of us that will be at big dem voting sites w/ signs talkin to folks as the go up.

Greg DeLassus,

For the record, Jimmy Carter lost to "uncommitted" in Iowa in '76.

haven't had a primary in this state since the republicans crossed over and put in wallace as our state winner in 1972.

Huh? I used to live in MI until just two years ago (I was doing my doctorate at the Univ of MI in beautiful Ann Arbor). I voted in the MI primary in 2004. I thought it was a marvelous improvement over the caucuses of 2000.

It was a caucus run by the state dems, greg. But it had internet voting, vote by mail and a few others but a caucus none the less. Heres an interesting quote from the rossman group who did the poll: Meanwhile, among a Democratic field that does not include Barack Obama or John Edwards, Hillary Clinton (at 48 percent) is now looking over her shoulder at the threesome of “Uncommitted” (at 28 percent), “unsure” (at 11 percent) and “other” (at 10 percent).

So uncommited, unsure and other wins 49-48.

Sure, but Jimmy Carter in 1976 was nothing like Hillary Clinton in 2008. He was a dark horse; she is anything but.

Whatever you need to get through the night.

OK,

We know the uncommitted numbers, how about those ballots who select no one and left all slots blank including uncommitted for the Presidential nominee.

Do we have those numbers.

I suspect some folks simply skip that section as it does not have the name of their candidate and they feel they are committed but the name simply is not on the ballot of the candidate they are committed to so they just skip it.

Do we have total ballot numbers vs. Clinton plus uncommitteds?

Dems in Michigan need to register as independents, vote in the GOP primary, and screw things up royally.

99% of the country hasn't voted yet. Still the MSM is hard at work eliminating candidates. TPM sems to be in agreement. The technique is simple. Just ignore the ones you want to go away. And always mention as few candidates as nessesary.

We need the fairness doctrine again.

I only hope that Fortress Investments has kept a cushy job open for the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do populist.

Only then would there be happiness in the universe.

Obama will not carry NY, NJ, Mass, or CA - why do you morons even think he has a chance. Now, I am ROFTL HAHAHAHAHAHA

Michael A, and others:

That's simply rediculuous, she's not running against uncommitted, she's still running against John Edwards and Barack Obama. Obama made a calculation on Michigan what that is I don't know if anyone is sure, perhaps he felt that if Clinton did well in the early contests, a win in MI well before any other contest would hurt him, or maybe he over-estimated Edwards and Labor.

Either way, I don't think you're saying that the Democrats in Michigan are so stupid as to realize Barack and John don't exist because their names aren't on the ballot...

Michael,

Let me get this straight, because they aren't on the ballot, Michigan voters who support Barack and Edwards just disappear into the ether?

Your point is that she is running against a candidate named "uncommitted," that's a specious argument, the Michigan voting dems rightly have the other candidates on their minds, note the other polls that include their names.

As for following the rules: The DNC did not force or ask anyone to remove their names from the ballot. It has asked them not to campaign in these states, which ALL of the candidates are complying with. Last I checked, Barack is still on the Florida ballot, as are the other democrats.

To suggest the DNC required or requested people to remove themselves from the ballot is bunk. The only rule the DNC made was that if you campaign in one of these states, you will not receive any delegates.