Daily Kickoff
👋 Good Thursday morning!
Ed note: The Daily Kickoff will be enjoying a summer Friday off and will be back in your inbox on Monday morning. Have a good weekend!
In a vote on Tuesday night, the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education voted to approve the addition of two Muslim holidays, Eid Al Fitr and Eid Al Adha, to the district’s list of observed holidays, while keeping schools open on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
The move came six months after a recall election in which three sitting board members were removed from their positions. Last year, the district attracted national attention for its efforts to rename an elementary school that had been named to honor Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), who served as San Francisco’s mayor from 1978-1988.
In a letter sent by the Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco to district Superintendent Mark Wayne, JCRC Executive Director Tyler Gregory and Adriana Lombard, the group’s director of public education, expressed concern that “the district is potentially perpetuating the very inequity it is trying to alleviate” by giving unequal recognition to the holidays.
“Like the San Francisco Muslim community, we too have had longstanding challenges with representation, curriculum, and observance needs with SF Unified,” Gregory told JI last night. “Our conversations with board members have been respectful and they understand our perspective and expectations. The question now becomes one of equity between communities. Will SF Unified recognize Jewish celebrations in the same way? What about other historically disadvantaged communities, like Hindu and Chinese communities? We’re looking for answers on how they will address communities’ inclusion in a practical and equitable way, and hope to bring Jewish parents and students in conversation with the district around these issues.”
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and Delaware Gov. John Carney, both Democrats, returned yesterday from a trip to Israel, where they visited cultural sites and met with political and business leaders. After leaving on Sunday for the trip, which was sponsored by the Center for Innovative Policy, the governors met with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides, Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid.
“By taking trips like this one, we can expand Israeli investments in New Jersey and forge new, mutually beneficial connections,” Murphy told JI. “I look forward to further deepening the economic and cultural bond between New Jersey and Israel.”
in review
Why Ilhan Omar’s primary opponent didn’t receive more support

Former Minneapolis City Councilmember Don Samuels
Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) razor-thin margin of victory in Tuesday’s Democratic primary in Minneapolis is raising questions about why pro-Israel political action committees didn’t back former City Councilman Don Samuels in the race, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Different candidates: It’s a question that Samuels, who lost to Omar by just 2,500 votes, is asking, too: “We were very, very frustrated by the lack of support from organizations that have ‘Antone fatigue,’… maybe ‘Black male opponent fatigue’ — not understanding that there are different kind of candidates, and that my potential for beating Ilhan was very high,” Samuels told JI on Wednesday, referring to Antone Melton-Meaux, who challenged Omar in the 2020 primary.
Mum’s the word: Two years ago, Omar, who has faced allegations of antisemitism from fellow legislators, vanquished Melton-Meaux, who received millions of dollars from pro-Israel donors — a community that roundly sat out this year’s contest. In addition to holding back funds from this year’s race, political action committees affiliated with AIPAC, Democratic Majority for Israel, Pro-Israel America and the Jewish Democratic Council of America also chose not to endorse Samuels.
Public confrontation: Publicly, none of the pro-Israel PACs have expressed regret about opting not to get involved. But privately, pro-Israel Democrats told JI that they feared getting involved would backfire and give Omar a boost. “People went to the right conclusion that she was vulnerable, she may be vulnerable locally, but that nationalizing the race would be a mistake. So can you be helpful without making it a big national event?” asked one Democrat who supports pro-Israel causes. “The question for people who want to make a difference, want to support pro-Israel candidates, want to ensure pro-Israel support, have to work through: How can you be most helpful?”
Bad reputation: Constituents argue that support from activists and donors outside the Minneapolis-based district might not have been enough to help Samuels, and that the barrage of pro-Israel spending last year may have worked to Omar’s advantage. Melton-Meaux “was perceived by the public as a puppet for the cause, and if AIPAC had put any money in [for Samuels], I think it would have tarnished [him],” a member of the Twin Cities Jewish community, who requested anonymity to speak freely, told JI.
Decisive moment: Samuels would’ve taken the support — if it had been offered. “I know that there were people I called and that were called on my behalf to say, ‘We need your help, we need your endorsement, we need your dollars, we need your support,’” Samuels recalled. “And they said, they said it very clear, ‘We’re not going to invest in this. Antone lost. She can’t be beaten. And so we’re looking at other races where we can have more impact and where our dollars will be more likely to make a difference.’ So we had to just eat it.”