Many have asked in comments and via email why American Jews vote so heavily for Democrats when this would seem to be against their interests. I’ll try to answer below.
Often, in the comments to articles I write, people ask why American Jews vote heavily Democratic. The numbers for President Trump were much better than for his predecessors, but over 50% of American Jews still voted for Kamala Harris. In the past, 75% of the American Jewish vote would go for the Democratic candidate. The question often is why.
One has to break down two opposing trends in the Jewish community in the United States. The smallest sector is orthodox/ultraorthodox. While relatively small, this community has been pro-Trump in all three elections at 90%+ levels. So the smallest, most religious part of the American Jewish community is definitely in with President Trump and his program that is both pro-Israel and also pro-America. Freedom of religion, less governmental intrusiveness, reduced pressure on anti-religious teaching requirements: orthodox Jews like the Republican program far more than the radical anti-religious offerings of the left. So, if you look at religious Jews, they overwhelmingly support Donald Trump and the Republican party.
As a disclaimer, I wish to say that I do not represent any Jewish group or organization. I grew up in a Jewish home that was typically Democratic. My parents voted for only one Republican, a family friend running for a judgeship in Illinois. My late mother quoted her father, both refugees from Hitler’s Germany, as having said, “Better a dead Democrat than a live Republican.” My mother was a Democratic election judge, and I still remember holding signs as a child for Ab Mikva, who represented the 10th District of Illinois. As I became more religiously observant, my views changed—as did both parties. That latter point is important.
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In the 70s and before, the Republican party was perceived as the party of the country club set, wealthy white Americans, and the titans of business. The Democrats represented the downtrodden, rural Americans, minorities, and the inner city poor. Before Reagan, there was really no place for Jews in the Republican Party. The party was lukewarm to Israel, and there were very few officeholders who were Jewish. So, for the first ¾ of the 20th century, the Democrats were the party for immigrant Jews and their descendants. And then there was an inversion of both parties. But before we get to that, let’s ask about Jewish practice.
As the names sound, orthodox and ultra-orthodox Jews do their best to learn the Torah and keep the commandments given by God to the Jewish people. Kosher food, Sabbath observance, prayers, etc., are central to their lives. They want a government that either supports their ability to live as traditional Jews or minimally just leaves them alone. Non-orthodox denominations like Reform and Conservative have chosen different approaches to Judaism. Driving on the Sabbath, being more lenient on kosher food, and admitting women into the rabbinate are some of the features of both movements. As Torah observance became less central, other issues became more important. “Tikun olam” is a concept from the Talmud of making the world more perfect. Much of the energy and focus of Reform and Conservative Judaism moved from traditional concerns of daily prayers, Torah learning, and keeping the commandments to more of a universalist Judaism that put a greater emphasis on social issues. Over decades, the divide between orthodox and non-orthodox movements in American Judaism has become more extensive. There are still some shared concepts, such as the holidays, but the actual practice between the groups has diverged enormously. I know. I grew up in a conservative synagogue and became more religious during my doctoral studies. I have thus been able to observe both sides up close.
While Jewish movements were moving apart, the Democrats and Republicans were undergoing massive internal changes. As Sheldon Adelson wrote in 2012 in an oped in the Wall Street Journal, he did not leave the Democratic Party; it left him. He and his wife, Miriam, have been massive financial supporters of Donald Trump. Why would he leave the party of his youth in Boston? As he noted, the party became much less friendly to Israel. One saw it at the Democratic convention when those assembled refused to support a plank declaring Jerusalem the capital of Israel. It continued with Barack Obama saying that he wanted to put “some daylight” between the US and Israel. Obama also pushed an Iran deal that Binyamin (Bibi) Netanyahu denounced as dangerous in a speech to a joint session of Congress. Moving forward, the Democrats grabbed onto every social craze, from gay marriage to trans. These points were non-starters for orthodox Jews, for the more socially-conscious Reform and Conservatives were okay with such new directions.
How does the Democrats’ anti-Israel behavior affect Israel? Barack Obama refused during a hot war in Gaza to send missiles that Israel needed. Joe Biden did the same with bombs and D9 tractors that Israel very much required. There are claims that Hamas is collecting unexploded Israeli ordnance and repurposing it for new bombs. Someone in the IDF claimed that they had to use 1970’s 1970s-era detonators due to the embargo that Biden made on Israel. The anti-Israel protests on campus and off have metastasized because the Biden Department of Justice refused to hold those financing and organizing the antisemitic activities responsible. Even now, a Senate hearing on combating antisemitism had no Democratic senators present.
If Jews are under increased pressure from Hamas lovers and if the Democratic party is less favorable towards Israel, then why didn’t President Trump receive 90% of all Jewish votes? A couple of reasons. Many American Jews still live by caricatures of the Republican Party and Donald Trump that are no longer relevant. The Republicans are no longer the unfriendly party of the country club set. Donald Trump has always been a friend of the Jews and Israel, and he has proven his support again and again. When I speak to people who voted against Trump, they go on about him being “a narcissistic, blah blah.” They would instead vote for a party that supports protesters who are demanding the destruction of the state of Israel and the Jewish people. Their support for illegals and every social craze blew up when their former friends and partners like BLM turned on them and joined the Hamas crazies. They refuse to recognize the reality that the Adelsons and many others saw: the Democratic Party is no longer welcoming to Jews or supporters of Israel. Donald Trump is a far better friend of Jews than Kamala Harris, even with her Jewish husband.
While the orthodox groups are the smallest part of the Jewish story in America, they are the fastest growing. Orthodox families are getting bigger, with more and more institutions being built for the growing community. In 25 years, the percentage of Jews supporting a pro-Israel, pro-religious freedom candidate will be over 80%. The last gasp of the liberal Jews, the descendants of those who escaped fascism in Europe, is being played out in this generation.