Biden’s withdrawal shifts the goalposts on Jewish voters

A week ago, Republicans were riding high, coming off a successful convention whose third day focussed on the Gaza War and campus protests, hoping to increase their vote in the Jewish community.

But, with Kamala Harris now most likely replacing Biden at the head of the ticket, Republicans can no longer be bullish about their chances of increasing Jewish support. It is not so much Harris herself, although she will surely be more formidable than Biden, but the prospect of a Jewish “First Gentleman” in her husband Doug Emhoff, that will dash Republican prospects.

Emhoff on the stump will be inspiring for liberal and progressive Jews and attractive to more moderate and conservative voters. This is particularly important in swing states with a significant Jewish vote, including the massively important Pennsylvania, as well as Arizona, Virginia, Michigan, and Georgia.

Solidifying Jewish support will be a relief to the Democrats, given the shifting ethnic loyalties potentially impacting the election. Hispanic Americans, long a solid Democrat constituency, have been drifting into the Republican sphere. Even African-Americans, long the Dems’ most reliable supporters, seemed shaky although that will no longer be the case with Harris as candidate.

Hoping to bring more Jews to their cause, last week’s Republican National Convention (RNC), as described by The New York Times, featured a parade of Jewish voices, indicative of Republican belief that they might sway enough Jewish voters this year to help win a tight election.

Prominent among them, Orna and Ronen Neutra, the parents of an American citizen still held by Hamas in Gaza, led the crowd in a chant of “bring them home,” after recounting how Mr Trump had called them after their son was taken hostage.