For far too long, the Democratic Party has had a monopoly on support from the Jewish community, despite the fact that the GOP has been considerably more supportive of Israel in recent years.
However, according to a new Pew Poll:
Republicans have…seen gains among Jewish voters, who have long been strong supporters of the Democratic Party. In 2008, 72% of Jews identified themselves as Democrats or said they leaned toward the Democratic Party, and Democrats held a 52-point advantage among this group. In 2011, the Democratic advantage among Jews has shrunk to 36 points, with 29% of the Jewish population aligning with the GOP. While the majority of Jews are still Democrats or lean toward the Democratic Party, Democrats’ dominance among this group has weakened since the last presidential election. In fact, Jews are the only religious group analyzed in which the percentage who identify themselves as Republican (as opposed to leaning toward the GOP) has risen significantly.
No doubt most Jews who vote Democrat simply do so out of tradition — their parents were Democrats etc. But is it possible that Obama’s lukewarm relationship with Israel has alarmed American Jews who put a premium on Israel’s security? After all, he hasn’t visited the country since he’s been president, and has presented himself as a moderator within the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, rather than a stalwart friend of the only Jewish state. Is it possible that the Jewish community is finally coming to its senses? Let’s hope so!
Check out this PJTV video of Roger L. Simon exploring this topic at a Republican Jewish Coalition event last year.
Jewish women need to marry republican men so that Jewish republicans will be born.
What will Obama do in a second term when he no longer has to worry about re-election and can ignore American opinion (and Congress) in foreign affairs?
This is a very conceited man who is determined to leave a Grand Legacy, and I think he will turn his attention to “solving” the Palestinian problem — at Israel’s expense.
This really scares me. Maybe there are some Jewish-American Democrats who are getting a bit scared too.
I agree.
It is more than tradition. Out of all my Jewish friends, only one is conservative. The rest are deeply committed liberals. They really despise conservatives. They hate them with a passion. And they are very vocal about their resentment of the various conservative personalities. They believe in global warming, redistribution of wealth etc. They sympathize with the occupy movement etc. They love Obama. They hate Fox News. They are on the left of the left.
It’s my perception that most Jews are not just passive followers that vote liberal, because their friends do. THEY are the leaders. They are the ones telling their friends to vote liberal. It seams Jews are more the core of liberalism than the fringe. They are the main banner holders, thinkers and theorists of the left.
I don’t know what it is. But there is something!….There is something in Jewish culture and religion that makes Jews become liberals. And it’s more than tradition. Unfortunately most of their non-Jewish liberal friends wants the Jewish state to disappear from the face of the earth.
Please quit trotting out this tired story line that “this may be the year Jews vote Republican”. It’s not going to happen. Most Jews are most comfortable in the Democratic camp. They may sometimes profess sympathy with certain Republican positions – but they can as a whole be totally relied on to vote Democrat. Please quit beating your head against a wall on this narrative.
William Safire is smiling somewhere.