Jewish Voters Sour on Top Democrats Amid Antisemitism Fears

Anxiety is growing inside Democratic circles over a crucial part of the party's coalition as the November midterm elections draw closer. Some Jewish voters are becoming increasingly uneasy with what they see as a lack of forceful pushback from certain Democrats against antisemitism within the party's progressive wing — a concern that could carry real consequences in competitive U.S. Senate races across the country. Still, a poll conducted in early March by the Jewish Electorate Institute, a nonprofit 501 organization, found that close to three-quarters of Jewish voters said they still intended to support Democratic candidates. In Michigan, Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed is trying to repair relations with Jewish voters after a difficult primary campaign in which he made comments about Jews and the state of Israel that critics found offensive. One Michigan rabbi who spoke with the New York Times said that although his congregation is 'predominantly Democratic,' many members remained divided over whom to support in the Senate race. 'I was very disappointed in the primary season in particular that so many politicians and pundits and podcasters seem to single out Israel and American supporters of Israel for criticism,' Rabbi Starr told the Times. Over 400 Jewish Democrats and Independents signed a public pledge to back El-Sayed's Republican opponent, former Congressman Mike Rogers. El-Sayed's campaign has made efforts to reach out to Jewish voters after the primaries. Democratic candidate for US Senate Abdul El-Sayed is facing tough questions over his past statements on Jews and Israel as he faces off against Republican Mike Rogers in the US Senate race in Michigan Attendees wear 'Trump' yarmulkes at the 2019 meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition, in Las Vegas A pro-Palestinian protestor holds Palestinian flag near a line of LAPD officers outside Pomona College's commencement ceremony in 2024 after the ceremony was moved off campus due to pro-Palestinian protestors occupying the main commencement stage In Texas, the party's Democratic nominee James Talarico has called Israel's actions in Gaza ' war crimes' and advocated for the US to not arm Israel. He does support Israel's right to be a Jewish state. READ MORE: Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani Rules Out Pitching in Playoffs In a statement to NBC, Talarico's campaign manager Seth Krasne said his candidate has a 'longstanding record combating antisemitism, defending Jewish students on the floor of the Texas House, and supporting Israel's right to exist,' which 'demonstrates his steadfast commitment to Jewish safety.' In Georgia, Democrat Jon Ossoff who is himself Jewish, has been criticized for not having 'ironclad' support for Israel in his competitive re-election race. From coast to coast, the level of support Democratic primary candidates received from AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee which is made up of US citizens who are supportive of pro-Israel policies, was used as a wedge issue. In a number of states, from New York to Michigan and Minnesota, AIPAC – backed incumbent Democrats at often times representing the more moderate wing of their party lost to Progressive insurgents who were anti-Israel at best and straight up anti-Semitic at worst. Senator Jon Ossoff, a Georgia Democrat running for re-election this year who is himself Jewish, has been criticized for not having 'ironclad' support for Israel In Texas, the party's Democratic nominee James Talarico has called Israel's actions in Gaza 'war crimes' and advocated for the US to not arm Israel. He does support Israel's right to be a Jewish state Joel Rubin, a former deputy assistant secretary of state from the Obama administration who was also the Jewish outreach director for Bernie Sanders 2020 campaign, noted in an August op-ed in the Free Press that even then, the campaign realized that Jews 'were an important constituency for Sanders, and they worried that anti-Zionist voices in his coalition would jeopardize his Jewish support.' Jewish candidates including Scott Wiener in California's San Francisco Bay Area and Brad Lander in New York City who ousted fellow Democrat Dan Goldman have been criticized for not being progressive enough just because they are Jewish. Sam Markstein, spokesman for the Republican Jewish Coalition told the Daily Mail, that 'the Republican Party is the only political home where American Jews can be proudly Jewish and loudly pro-Israel — and the Democrats have made the contrast impossible to miss by handing their party over to the far-left mob.' New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who was elected to his job last year despite his questionable views on Jews and Muslims, was asked by some of his constituents including the families of 9-11 victims to not attend the 25th anniversary ceremony of the tragedy this week, but he has stated that he plans to be there anyways. With 56 days remaining until the November midterms, the support of Jewish voters appears to be up for grabs in several critical contests across the country, which could determine the control of congress next year.