FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 18, 2020
CONTACT: Logan Smith, [email protected], 202-709-8825
Majority of Jewish voters say they feel less safe due to increased antisemitic violence, more energized to defeat Trump in November
NEW YORK CITY — Bend the Arc: Jewish Action on Tuesday released the results of a nationwide poll of Jewish Americans showing that Republican attempts to divide Jewish voters by weaponizing bad-faith accusations of antisemitism have failed.
The survey conducted by ALG Research found that not only has President Trump and the GOP failed to convince American Jews to leave the Democratic Party en masse through bad-faith smear campaigns against Democratic politicians and aggressive policies toward Israel, but Jewish voters’ top priority headed into the 2020 election is voting Trump out of office.
“Jewish voters aren’t being fooled by right-wing attempts to exploit us for political gain, and we refuse to be divided against each other and our allies,” said Stosh Cotler, CEO of Bend the Arc: Jewish Action. “Even in these dangerous political times, Jewish Americans continue to believe in the vision of an America where everyone experiences freedom, fairness, security and belonging, no matter what we look like or where we come from.”
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64% of Jewish voters self-identify as Democrats, while 25% identify as Republicans.
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75% view President Trump unfavorably, and 66% view him very unfavorably. Just 24% of Jewish voters hold a favorable opinion of the president. In an open-ended question about what matters most about the 2020 elections, the most common response was defeating Donald Trump.
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58% of Jewish voters believe Trump holds antisemitic views. 76% believe Trump holds racist views, including both white Jews (76%) and Jews of color (79%).
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90% of Jewish voters believe antisemitism has increased in the last four years, and 73% say they feel less safe compared to four years ago. 46% of Jewish voters say the increase in antisemitism has spurred them to get more involved in political activism.
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By a greater than 6:1 margin, white nationalism is clearly viewed as a bigger problem in the Republican Party than the Democratic Party. 65% of Jewish voters believe white nationalism is a bigger problem in the Republican Party, compared to 9% who think it’s a greater issue in the Democratic Party.
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Jewish officials in the Trump administration are viewed unfavorably. The president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner is viewed unfavorably by a nearly 3:1 ratio (22% favorable / 64% unfavorable). While 54% of Jewish voters are unfamiliar with Stephen Miller, he is viewed unfavorably at a greater than 5:1 ratio among those who can rate him (7% favorable / 39% unfavorable).
“Trump and the Republican Party have enabled white nationalists to gain legitimacy and power throughout the country, moving swiftly from the margins into the mainstream,” added Cotler. “But instead of being cowed into silence, we are more ready than ever to join together with our allies and rise as one to remove Trump and tear down the white nationalist movement that seeks to destroy us all.”