Jack Schlossberg, the 32-year-old grandson of John. F. Kennedy, is joining a growing crop of young House contenders with digital clout who have been seeking to convert online popularity into a seat in Congress
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Jack Schlossberg walks into the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library ahead of the annual gala on May 4, 2025.
Add JewishInsider on GoogleJack Schlossberg’s decision to launch a bid for Congress in New York City last week was just the latest example of a Kennedy scion hoping to ascend to federal office, testing the continued strength of a hallowed family name whose political currency has dwindled over the years.
His unorthodox campaign also marked the most recent arrival of a new type of political candidate that has cropped up with increasing regularity this election cycle: the social media influencer vying for power beyond the screen.
Schlossberg, the 32-year-old grandson of John. F. Kennedy, is joining a growing crop of young House contenders with digital clout who have been seeking to convert online popularity into a seat in Congress. His campaign announcement follows, among other recent newcomers, Kat Abughazaleh, a 26-year-old left-wing social media influencer running in next year’s crowded Democratic primary to succeed retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) in the Chicago suburbs.
Both parties have tried to harness social media to advance their messages while courting influencers and content creators to broaden their appeal among younger online voters. But as influencers engaged in political commentary now pursue political office — most with few apparent qualifying credentials — it remains to be seen if their new efforts can translate to winning campaigns.
And it’s not just young recruits trying to parlay their social media clout into political success. George Conway, the vocally anti-Trump conservative lawyer, is hoping that 2.2 million followers on X and his prolfic online attacks against the president will translate into Democratic votes as he seriously considers running in the Nadler district as well. To succeed, voters in the heavily-Democratic district would have to overlook his long record of traditionally conservative views on policy.
So far, the results have not been promising for such candidates. In a special election for a vacant House seat in Arizona this past summer, for instance, Deja Foxx, a 25-year-old influencer, fell short by a nearly 40-point margin, losing to a more well-known local lawmaker, Adelita Grijalva — a daughter of the late congressman who represented the district for more than two decades.
Foxx, a progressive TikTok activist who first drew national attention during a viral confrontation with a former Republican senator, raised a lot of money for her campaign, and polling suggested that she was gaining traction toward the end of the race. But despite the hype, a majority of voters ultimately elevated a more traditional choice to the Capitol — underscoring the obstacles in to translating online fame to electoral success.
In Houston, meanwhile, Isaiah Martin, a young Democratic activist with a sizable online following who previously served as an advisor to the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), faced a similar outcome in a crowded special House election in November — placing fifth with only 5% of the vote.
For her part, Abughazaleh, a former video producer for Media Matters of America who recently pleaded not guilty to federal charges last month alleging that she impeded immigration agents during a protest, is also trailing well behind a more established primary opponent, Daniel Biss, the mayor of Evanston, polls have shown — though many voters still remain undecided.
On the Republican side, some far-right influencers have also fared poorly in recent elections, including Laura Loomer in Florida and Brandon Herrera in Texas.
Jonathan Nagler, the co-director of the Center for Social Media and Politics at New York University, said that “we have no evidence that being able to influence someone’s consumer decisions translates to the ability to influence their political decisions. But one of the things essential for winning office is name recognition. Influencers have that. And they have the ability to reach lots of voters. That means they have the necessary resources to run a real campaign. So they become potential candidates.”
“The challenge for influencers is to come up with issues to run on,” he told Jewish Insider. “They need some reasons to suggest they can be politically relevant and do something that matters to people.”
In Schlossberg’s case, it is for now unclear if he can meaningfully leverage his family ties as he enters an increasingly crowded primary featuring a range of state and local elected officials whose political and legislative backgrounds far outmatch his own thin resume.
The Kennedy heir, who is a graduate of both Yale and Harvard, has most notably served a stint in the State Department and was a political correspondent for Vogue, where he wrote just a handful of articles — underlining his limited professional experience.
His campaign website is short on policy and instead features vague pronouncements on such concepts as “focus,” “optimism,” “courage” and “accountability.”
He is best known for his provocative social media presence, which has stirred controversy that could fuel attacks in the open primary to succeed retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) in Manhattan. A recently resurfaced online video where Schlossberg seems to repeatedly perform a Nazi salute is among the posts that have raised questions about his new candidacy.
Still, one Democratic strategist who spoke with Schlossberg before he launched his campaign said that he had gotten a largely positive first impression from their conversation — despite his reputation for bizarre and often outlandish social media stunts.
“He’s smart. Had something to him. But IDK,” the strategist texted skeptically, using digital shorthand for “I don’t know.”
Nadler, who is expected to endorse his protégé, Micah Lasher, an assemblyman who represents the Upper West Side, has also expressed doubts about Schlossberg’s campaign, saying he “certainly is not going to be a major candidate” and that the House replacement “should be somebody with a record of public service, a record of public accomplishment.”
Hank Sheinkopf, a veteran Democratic consultant in New York City, told JI that “being an influencer in today’s campaign world matters certainly with younger voters,” but suggested that Schlossberg would need to adapt to reach a broader subset of voters in an older and more traditionally liberal district.
“In the complicated candidate and geography he will face, it is only a small part of the coming highly competitive campaign,” he said.
Aber Kawas, a left-wing Muslim activist, also expressed solidarity with a man convicted of providing support to Al-Qaida
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Aber Kawas, from the Arab American Association of New York, speaks to members and supporters of the New York Immigration Coalition during a rally for immigration reform in Foley Square, June 28, 2016 in New York City, New York.
Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, is facing scrutiny for reportedly throwing his support behind a local state Assembly candidate with a record of controversial remarks about 9/11, Israel and other related topics.
Aber Kawas, a Palestinian American activist running for an open Assembly seat in a largely Hispanic Queens district, came under the spotlight this week after several of her past online posts and comments resurfaced.
Mamdani’s decision to privately endorse Kawas, which was reported by The New York Daily News, underscores the depth of his hostility toward Israel, as he flexes his newfound political capital to boost a candidate whose extreme views are already stirring backlash.
In one widely circulated online video clip from 2017, Kawas downplayed the 9/11 attacks and suggested they paled in comparison to what she characterized as a “long trajectory” of capitalism, racism, white supremacy and Islamophobia that “have all been used to colonize lands” and “take resources from other people.”
“The idea that we have to apologize for a terror attack that a couple people did,” she said of 9/11, “and then there is no apologies or reparations for genocides and for slavery, et cetera, is something that I kind of find reprehensible.”
Kawas, who is in her early 30s and has long been active in Arab and Muslim organizing in New York City, also wrote a series of now-deleted blog posts in which she expressed solidarity with a man convicted of providing material support to al-Qaida as well as a group of Hamas-linked Muslim activists known as the Holy Land Five — whom she called “imprisoned heros.”
In another post in 2013, Kawas, commemorating the anniversary of the Nakba recognizing the mass displacement of Palestinians during the founding of Israel in 1948, also lamented “the day that the British Empire gave control of the land of Palestine to European Zionists who created a state based on the ethnic cleansing, murder, displacement, and occupation of millions of indigenous Palestinians in the area.”
Kawas is a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement targeting Israel and was involved in efforts to promote failed legislation led by Mamdani that sought to strip Jewish nonprofits of their tax-exempt status, according to a candidate questionnaire solicited by the Democratic Socialists of America, which is reportedly moving to back her campaign.
Elsewhere in the questionnaire, which was shared with Jewish Insider this week, Kawas said she would “refrain from any and all affiliation with the Israeli government and Zionist lobby groups” such as AIPAC and J Street, a left-wing organization that has defended Mamdani.
The DSA did not respond to a request for comment, and Kawas could not be reached on Wednesday.
Mamdani, for his part, shares Kawas’ approach to Israel as a longtime supporter of BDS, which he has indicated he could seek to uphold as mayor. He has previously praised the Holy Land Five in a 2017 rap song that drew criticism during the election. As an undergrad at Bowdoin College, where he founded a chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, he also ended a brief partnership with J Street U, citing a policy of anti-normalization precluding engagement with groups that support Israel.
While he moderated on a number of issues over the course of his campaign, including a pledge to retain Jessica Tisch as police commissioner that assuaged some concerns among Jewish voters (she announced Wednesday that she had accepted the post), Mamdani has otherwise largely continued to make exceptions for Israel, one of his top issues as a state assemblyman.
This week, for instance, he reiterated a vow to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his alleged war crimes if he steps foot in New York City, a move experts have questioned as legally dubious.
Mamdani’s behind-the-scenes involvement in the Queens Assembly contest represents one of his first efforts to influence a local race since his election. He had also reportedly offered support to Brad Lander, the outgoing city comptroller, in a challenge to Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), a pro-Israel incumbent. And he has publicly discouraged Chi Ossé, a far-left city councilman, from mounting a bid to unseat House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), saying in an interview Wednesday that “right now is not the time” as he seeks to manage his relationships with top Democrats to advance his affordability agenda.
In the Queens race, Mamdani’s recent engagement has faced skepticism from pro-Israel activists.
“If DSA/Zohran Mamdani want to be the muscle behind the most anti-Israel candidate they can find to represent a majority Latino district with actual problems in Queens, that’s their prerogative,” Sara Forman, who leads New York Solidarity Network, a local pro-Israel group, wrote in a social media post this week. “Choosing to fixate on Israel instead of schools, Trump or ICE is certainly a choice.”
But Mamdani’s push to influence the primary has also raised a possible conflict with the left, as he places himself in opposition to outgoing Assemblywoman Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, a DSA member running for state Senate who had already endorsed her chief of staff for the seat, which is based in Jackson Heights. Brian Romero, the aide, has vowed to continue with his bid in spite of the split endorsements, setting up an internecine fight that could test Mamdani’s sway as mayor.
A spokesperson for Mamdani did not respond to a request for comment from JI on Wednesday.
For her part, Kawas, who filed to run on Tuesday, is relatively new to the district, local campaign finance records show, and only recently moved back to New York City after studying in South Africa.
Still, a political advisor to Kawas reportedly argued at a recent DSA meeting that her background is best suited for the race as the far left seeks to ramp up its opposition to Israel with Mamdani set to take office.
“We have to actually run a Palestinian Arab in this race because we need to draw the fire of the Israeli lobby, and we have to beat them,” the advisor, Joe Stanton, told attendees at the meeting, according to The Daily News.
In her DSA questionnaire, Kawas echoed that sentiment. “As a Palestinian, it is clear that the majority understands what is happening to our people, and with the groundswell of support and resistance to genocide, we’ve made some headway on particular boycott and divestment campaigns,” she wrote. “But while the tide is turning in some respects (especially with Zohran’s election), the pro-Israel lobby is still dominant.”
“It is urgent that we continue to grow connections across the Palestine movement and the broader left on this terrain,” Kawas wrote, “and this office is the place where I can do that.”
Plus, Ted Cruz turns up the heat on Tucker Carlson
Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images
Gov. Greg Abbott announces his reelection campaign for Texas governor in Houston, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
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📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
After their bilateral meeting in the Oval Office today, President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced progress on a U.S.-Saudi defense pact and revealed details about Riyadh’s purchase of F-35 fighter jets, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports.
Trump said the F-35s being sold to Riyadh are “going to be pretty similar” to the advanced F-35I Adir model that Israel flies. “This [Saudi Arabia] is a great ally, and Israel’s a great ally. I know they’d like you [MBS] to get planes of reduced caliber, but I don’t think that makes you too happy. … As far as I’m concerned, [both countries are] at a level where they should get top of the line.”
The U.S. has granted Israel customization rights and operational freedoms with the F-35 that other countries do not have, which contribute to its qualitative military edge. With Saudi Arabia now the only other country in the Middle East besides Israel to obtain the fighter jet, questions remain around which model and allowances Riyadh will receive.
Trump also announced the two countries have “reached an agreement” on a defense pact, without offering further details, and said he expects them to reach a civil nuclear agreement as well…
MBS’ meeting with a bipartisan group of senators on Capitol Hill tomorrow has been canceled, Punchbowl News reports, after the Saudis were reportedly very selective about which senators could attend. His meeting with House lawmakers is still on the books, and he may still meet with individual senators…
The deals keep coming: Humain, the artificial intelligence company backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, is set to announce a “slew” of agreements with U.S. businesses tomorrow, Semafor scooped, including data center construction in collaboration with Amazon, AMD, xAI and GlobalAI…
Elsewhere in Washington, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) upped the ante in his public dispute with Tucker Carlson, JI’s Gabby Deutch reports, telling the Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly this morning that calling out antisemitism from Carlson and his Republican allies is necessary to defend American values.
Cruz warned that many people are not fully grasping the scope of the problem, describing a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this year where, he said, Netanyahu tried to push back on the idea that right-wing antisemitism was a threat.
“I’ll tell you, he actually was a little dismissive of that. He said, ‘No, no, no, that’s Qatar, that’s Iran, that’s bots,’” Cruz said. “My response: ‘Mr. Prime Minister, yes, but no. Yes, that’s happening. Yes, there are millions of dollars being spent to spread this poison. Yes, that’s happening online. But it is real and organic’”…
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott designated the Muslim Brotherhood and Council on American-Islamic Relations as foreign terrorist groups and transnational criminal organizations today, JI’s Marc Rod reports, prohibiting them from buying land in Texas and allowing the AG’s office to sue to shut them down.
Efforts to designate the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR have seen little public progress at the federal level, both in Congress and in the executive branch. But Abbott’s move may end up fueling momentum for similar legislative moves out of Washington, and could also provide a model to other like-minded governors in key states…
The Department of Education signed agreements with six other federal agencies to take over aspects of its work, marking one of the largest moves to dismantle the department to date, USA Today reports.
The Departments of the Interior, Health and Human Services and State are all taking a piece of the pie, though the Education Department has not determined the future of its Office for Civil Rights…
Cornell University Provost Kavita Bala took the unusual step of disclosing details about a discrimination case against Eric Cheyfitz, a professor who was placed on leave after he attempted to exclude an Israeli student from participating in his course on Gaza, due to misinformation circulating about the case. The professor recently retired to avoid further investigation by the university.
“After [the] third class, the faculty member talked to the student and explicitly told the student that he was not welcome in the class because ‘he was an Israeli citizen supporting an Israeli stance in Gaza.’ Those are the faculty member’s words,” Bala said at a recent Faculty Senate meeting. “This is not a case of academic freedom. This is a case of discrimination based on national origin”…
In an op-ed titled, “Why I Became a Socialist,” Chi Ossé, the New York City councilman mounting a primary challenge to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), explains his recent decision to join the Democratic Socialists of America and touts his support for Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani as critical to his victory.
Though Ossé appears to be capitalizing on his partnership with the incoming mayor to elevate his profile, Mamdani has discouraged Ossé on several occasions from running against the top House Democrat at a time when he’ll need support and funds from Washington…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for a dispatch from the conservative National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism’s first summit following its split with the Heritage Foundation.
Tomorrow, the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum will take place at the Kennedy Center, featuring discussions on energy policy, AI, financial services, urban development, biotechnology, aerospace and defense and more. A special address is on the agenda, though neither President Donald Trump nor Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s attendance has been confirmed.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination of Tammy Bruce, currently the State Department spokesperson, to be deputy U.S. ambassador to the U.N.
The Endowment for Middle East Truth is holding its 16th annual Rays of Light in the Darkness awards dinner in Washington, honoring Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), Justice Department senior counsel Leo Terrell, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter, Hungarian Ambassador to the U.S. Szabolcs Takács and journalist Anila Ali.
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TRIBUNAL TURMOIL
Israel petitions ICC to remove chief prosecutor from case, citing conflict of interest
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Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on March 31, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Good Monday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Washington is preparing for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit tomorrow, where he’ll meet President Donald Trump at the White House and be hosted for dinner with administration officials, members of Congress and business leaders. On Wednesday, MBS is expected to meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill, Punchbowl News reports, and the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum will take place at the Kennedy Center.
Trump confirmed to reporters in the Oval Office this afternoon that the U.S. will sell F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, without offering details of the deal…
In a blurring of the lines between the political and the personal, the president may have more than just defense deals on his mind: The Trump Organization is in talks to bring a Trump property to one of Saudi Arabia’s largest government-owned real estate developments, The New York Times reports…
The U.N. Security Council just adopted the U.S.-sponsored resolution backing Trump’s 20-point peace plan, including the creation of an international stabilization force in the Gaza Strip, with 13 votes in favor and Russia and China abstaining. The resolution contains language on “a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood”…
The Journal also reports on Hamas’ rising popularity inside Gaza since the start of the ceasefire with Israel, as Gazans see the terror group as capable of restoring order and preventing lawlessness, which may pose an issue to the implementation of the ceasefire that requires Hamas to disarm…
In the latest fallout at the Heritage Foundation over its president’s defense of Tucker Carlson after his friendly interview with neo-Nazi influencer Nick Fuentes, Robert George, a prominent board member, resigned today, citing the lack of a “full retraction” by Heritage President Kevin Roberts of the video defending Carlson, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports.
George’s decision to step down indicates that Roberts is likely safe in his role, for now, as its board remains split about his future, according to a former Heritage staffer familiar with internal discussions…
Trump weighed in on the Carlson controversy over the weekend, saying when asked by reporters what role Carlson should play in the conservative movement after his interview with Fuentes, “I found [Carlson] to be good. I mean, he said good things about me over the years. I think he’s good. We’ve had some good interviews.”
“You can’t tell him who to interview. I mean, if he wants to interview Nick Fuentes, I don’t know much about him, but if he wants to do it, get the word out. People have to decide. Ultimately, people have to decide. … Meeting people, talking to people for somebody like Tucker, that’s what they do. You know, people are controversial. Some are, some aren’t. I’m not controversial, so I like it that way”…
Also evoking backlash, a producer for former Rep. Matt Gaetz’s (R-FL) weeknight show on the right-wing One America News Network has reportedly been fired after he shared a vehemently antisemitic social media post depicting Jews as cockroaches, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports.
Vish Burra, who was a booker and script writer for Gaetz, had drawn widespread backlash for posting an AI-generated animated video last week showing him entering a “scheming room” with Stars of David on the door to find a group of cockroaches counting money, who scurry away upon his arrival. The post has since been deleted.
Burra also defended Roberts in a separate post, writing, “I will expose the vermin in the venomous coalition and their transgression against MAGA, America First, and Kevin Roberts at The Heritage Foundation. It all starts with Susan Lebovitz-Edelman,” referring to a Jewish trustee at the conservative Manhattan Institute who is married to hedge fund manager Joseph Edelman…
Political alliances are developing in the Democratic primary to replace New Jersey Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill in a special election for the state’s 11th Congressional District: Gov. Phil Murphy announced he’s backing Essex County Commissioner Brendan Gill, his former campaign manager and a front-runner in the race, while Tahesha Way, his lieutenant governor, is expected to launch a campaign shortly.
The field of nine other Democrats also includes former Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), who represented the neighboring district until 2023 and today received the endorsement of Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ), in an apparent act of reciprocity — Malinowski supported Kim in his bid for Senate in 2024 against the governor’s wife, Tammy Murphy. The primary is expected to take place in late January-early February…
In nearby New York, pro-Israel Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) drew a primary challenger today: Chuck Park, who served as a foreign service officer until 2019 and as chief of staff to New York City Councilman Shekar Krishnan, an ally of Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, announced an anti-establishment bid for the Queens district…
Now that he is about to assume leadership of the largest city in the U.S., Mamdani will need to receive top-level security clearance from the Trump administration, marking the first test of the new mayor’s relationship with Washington, Politico reports. Trump told reporters on Sunday that Mamdani “would like to come to Washington and meet and we’ll work something out” and “we want to see everything work out well for New York”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for a deep dive into the shifting anti-Israel dynamics on the far right.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s White House visit will begin tomorrow with an arrival ceremony on the South Lawn and a greeting on the South Portico, before an Oval Office bilateral meeting and signing and lunch in the Cabinet Room. A formal dinner, hosted by First Lady Melania Trump, will take place in the evening in the East Room.
The American Jewish Committee will hold a webinar, “Unpacking the Saudi White House Visit,” tomorrow afternoon with Jason Isaacson, AJC’s chief policy and political affairs officer; Anne Dreazen, vice president of AJC’s Center for a New Middle East; and Michael Ratney, former U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
The National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, a project that was closely affiliated with the Heritage Foundation until earlier this month when it broke with the conservative think tank over Heritage President Kevin Roberts’ defense of Tucker Carlson, is hosting a summit in Washington tomorrow in response to the recent developments. The gathering, “Exposing and Countering Extremism and Antisemitism on the Political Right,” will feature remarks from task force co-chairs Luke Moon, Pastor Mario Bramnick and Ellie Cohanim; U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee; Ralph Reed, president of the Faith and Freedom Coalition; and Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council. Discussion topics will include “replacement theology,” the path ahead for Gen Z and “overcoming the Woke Right.”
The Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly wraps up tomorrow in Washington. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is slated to speak and JI’s Lahav Harkov will moderate a panel on the Middle East in a post-Oct. 7 world.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz will deliver remarks with pop diva Nicki Minaj tomorrow on the persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
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MANHATTAN MOMENTUM
Crowded field of Democrats seeks to win over Jewish voters in race to succeed Nadler
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Plus, moderates speechless in Seattle
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Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter addresses Rosh Hashanah reception at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, Sept. 18th, 2025
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said in an interview with The Jerusalem Post that Israel “prefer[s] that Turkey not receive F-35s from the U.S.,” breaking with Washington over the move that President Donald Trump indicated he was open to during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in September.
But Leiter dismissed concerns around Saudi Arabia potentially acquiring F-35s, which is currently under negotiation ahead of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the White House next week. “There’s no indication that Israel’s qualitative edge will be compromised,” he said. Leiter has recently become Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s main conduit in Washington after the resignation of Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer…
Israel is seeking a new 20-year memorandum of understanding with the U.S. when the current one expires in 2028, U.S. and Israeli officials told Axios, double the length of past agreements.
New Israeli propositions, including redirecting some of the funds towards joint U.S.-Israeli R&D rather than direct military aid, are reportedly designed to make the lengthy deal more attractive to Trump as well as the GOP, which has grown weary of foreign aid…
Trump told MBS in a phone call last month that he expects to see progress made on Israel-Saudi normalization now that the ceasefire in Gaza is in force, U.S. officials also told Axios, which MBS said he was “willing to work on”…
Israel and White House advisor Jared Kushner are preparing contingency plans in case Trump’s 20-point Gaza peace plan doesn’t come to fruition, Israeli media reports. The IDF’s chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, told Israeli Security Cabinet officials that the IDF will soon present its alternative…
Meanwhile in the U.S., the Democratic primary for the seat of retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) in New York’s 12th Congressional District, which has one of the largest Jewish constituencies in the country, gets more crowded by the day.
Shortly after the entry of JFK’s grandson, Jack Schlossberg, into the race, Erik Bottcher, a Democratic city councilman and LGBTQ activist, told The New York Times he’s jumping in (and that he supports Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state). There are rumors that Lincoln Project co-founder George Conway is eyeing a bid, as well.
Among the many other candidates are longtime Nadler aide Micah Lasher, who today got the endorsement of Comptroller-elect Mark Levine; state Assemblyman Alex Bores; and gun control activist Cameron Kasky, who posted yesterday on social media, “If you are a Democrat running in 2026 and do not fully support an arms embargo to the State of Israel … Stop wasting everybody’s time”…
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell conceded to his opponent, socialist Katie Wilson, today after last night’s ballot drop made it mathematically impossible for him to prevail.
Though the moderate Harrell led in the polls for the week following Election Day, Wilson eventually gained ground and now leads him by a 0.7% margin — just shy of 2,000 votes. With only several hundred votes left to be counted, The Seattle Times said the race is “on pace to be the closest in modern Seattle politics.”
Wilson joins New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, as well as progressive challengers who prevailed in several Seattle City Council races, as evidence of the far left’s growing popularity in major U.S. cities. However, their small (or razor thin, in Wilson’s case) margins of victory and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s win over his DSA-aligned opponent are proof the fringe still lacks a mandate in the Democratic Party…
Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) announced raising more than $500,000 in the first 24 hours after the launch of her comeback bid for her seat in Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District.
The Jewish, pro-Israel Navy veteran sent out a fundraising email this afternoon with the subject line “Chutzpah,” saying the “Yiddish term that means guts or courage … runs in my family” and she’s “not afraid of a little mishigas”…
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) was hospitalized today after suffering a “ventricular fibrillation flare-up” and subsequent fall and face injuries, but is doing well, his spokesperson reported. His scheduled discussion this evening with UJA-Federation of New York about his new book has been cancelled…
The New York Times profiles Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts and his path from leading a small Catholic college to helming the prominent think tank and sparking controversy among conservatives over his embrace of Tucker Carlson.
Roberts claimed as part of his defense over releasing the controversial video during a staff meeting last week, “I actually don’t have time to consume a lot of news. I consume a lot of sports,” and “I didn’t know much about this [Nick] Fuentes guy. I still don’t.”
“‘Who could believe that the head of a think tank doesn’t think?’ said Charles Jacobs, the president of the Jewish Leadership Project, which resigned from a Heritage Foundation task force meant to fight antisemitism after Mr. Roberts’ video was released”…
Joining the list of Heritage resignations, Adam Mossoff, a law professor at George Mason’s Scalia Law School and a prominent pro-Israel advocate, announced he is resigning as a Heritage visiting fellow today “based on [his] considered judgment” of Roberts’ video and “subsequent commentary”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for a preview of President Donald Trump’s meeting next week with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams is traveling to Israel tomorrow for a five-day trip where he plans to meet with government officials and economic development and high-tech leaders.
The Texas Tribune Festival, taking place this week in Austin, continues tomorrow with speakers including former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Democratic Texas Senate candidates James Talarico and Rep. Colin Allred, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), comedian John Mulaney, former Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV), venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale and former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. On Saturday, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Adam Schiff (D-CA) are slated to speak.
MSNBC is launching its rebrand on Saturday as MS NOW, part of its separation from NBCUniversal, with dozens of veteran journalists recruited as part of its expanded newsroom.
On Sunday, the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust will present its fourth annual New York Jewish Book Festival.
Sunday evening, the Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly kicks off in Washington, with an opening plenary including former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, authors Sarah Hurwitz and Micah Goodman, CNN contributor Scott Jennings and Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, senior rabbi at Central Synagogue in New York City.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
Stories You May Have Missed
BROTHERHOOD PARADOX
Israel’s neighbors have banned the Muslim Brotherhood, but Israel hasn’t. Why not?
One of its branches is banned for Hamas ties. The other sits in the Knesset
WOOD-N’T TAKE IT
Another Maine Democrat takes page from Platner playbook
Jordan Wood, now running to succeed Rep. Jared Golden, said he won’t take money from AIPAC in his newly launched House campaign
Plus, Cait Conley emerges as Dem front-runner against Lawler
Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Donald Trump meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during a “coffee ceremony” at the Saudi Royal Court on May 13, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Good Wednesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
U.S. and Saudi officials are working to finalize a defense pact between the two countries ahead of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington next week, Axios reports. The agreement would reportedly contain similar guarantees to those Qatar received from the U.S. last month, with the Saudis also looking to purchase a weapons package that would include F-35 fighter jets.
The Trump administration also told the Saudis that it would like to see progress made on Saudi-Israel normalization, U.S. officials said. The negotiations on these deals quietly brought White House advisor Jared Kushner to Riyadh over the weekend and the Saudi defense minister to the U.S. earlier this week…
Jordan Wood, a former congressional aide and Democratic candidate for Senate in Maine, announced that he is switching his candidacy to now run for the House in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, where Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) has said he will not seek reelection.
Wood joined his fellow Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner in vowing not to accept support from AIPAC, saying in an interview last week, “There’s a tremendous amount of distrust right now among Democratic primary voters that the money that AIPAC has put into our political system has affected our priorities when it comes to foreign aid to Israel”…
Another shifting race is New York’s 17th Congressional District, where Jessica Reinmann, a Democratic nonprofit executive who was challenging Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), dropped out of the Democratic primary today and endorsed Cait Conley.
An Army veteran with extensive counterterrorism experience in the Middle East, Conley told Jewish Insider in April about her commitment to Israel’s security and concerns around threats posed by Iran.
With her background in national security, Conley is viewed as having the strongest profile to win back the swing seat for the party, according to Democratic sources familiar with the race.…
The Wall Street Journal reports on financial gains made by U.S. businesses over the two-year Israel-Hamas war; out of the $32 billion of military-related sales the U.S. has greenlit to Israel since October 2023, $19.3 billion is through contracts with Boeing, Lockheed Martin has secured $743 million, Caterpillar secured $295 million, and more…
An Israeli-founded AI cybersecurity company, Tenzai, founded just six months ago, came out of stealth yesterday with a $75 million seed round. Its technology, which finds hackable vulnerabilities in code, drew support from major venture capital firms including Greylock Partners, Lux Capital and Battery Ventures…
Israel reopened the Zikim border crossing into Gaza today to facilitate increased food and humanitarian aid flow, as part of its compliance with the ongoing ceasefire agreement with Hamas…
After being heckled by anti-Israel protesters at a podcast taping earlier this week, former Vice President Kamala Harris paused the conversation to tell the audience: “A lot of what this process has been for me has been about reflection. Look, we should’ve done more as an administration. We should’ve spoken publicly about our criticism of the way that Netanyahu and his government were executing this war.”
“We had more levers in terms of leverage that we did not use. … But let’s be very clear, that the inhuman nature of what has happened to the Palestinian people in Gaza, the innocent civilians, the extent of hunger, famine, suffering, death, is something that we must acknowledge,” Harris continued…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for reporting on the status of the Muslim Brotherhood under Israeli law.
The U.S. House is expected to approve a spending package to reopen the government this evening, which would fund the government through Jan. 30.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom is holding a hearing tomorrow morning on religious freedom in Syria during the country’s transition out of dictatorship.
The DP World Tour golf championship kicks off in Dubai, UAE, tomorrow.
Stories You May Have Missed
NEXT STEPS
After Mamdani win, socialists look to challenge Democratic incumbents in NYC
Pro-Israel Democratic Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Ritchie Torres and Dan Goldman are facing long-shot challengers from the far left
HISTORY LESSONS
Clintons tie Trump’s Gaza peace plan to Oslo Accords in Rabin memorial discussion
Former President Bill Clinton invoked slain Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin’s ‘law’: ‘We will fight terror as if there are no negotiations. We will negotiate as if there is no terror’
Plus, Dermer departs
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Council Member Alexa Aviles speaks during a press conference outside of City Hall on April 10, 2025 in New York City.
Good Wednesday morning!
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we report on the far-left challengers gearing up to compete against Democratic incumbents in New York City and cover Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed’s evasive answer to whether he supports Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. We report on the reaction of Jewish groups to former state Assemblyman Michael Blake, who is running in the Democratic primary against Rep. Ritchie Torres, for featuring a clip of an antisemitic influencer in his campaign launch video. We also cover the announcement by former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) that she will run to reclaim the congressional seat she lost in 2022, and report on Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer’s resignation. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Shulem Lemmer, Gal Gadot, and Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by Jewish Insider Israel Editor Tamara Zieve and U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik, with an assist from Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- The International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries begins today in New York City, bringing together 6,200 rabbis from 111 countries.
- Former First Lady Michelle Obama will appear at Washington’s Sixth & I Synagogue this evening to discuss her forthcoming book, The Look.
- Finance industry executives — including Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan and Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman — were invited to dinner at the White House with President Donald Trump this evening.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S Josh Kraushaar
Beware the law of unintended consequences: President Donald Trump’s zeal to aggressively redraw maps in GOP-friendly states is looking like it will bring less of a political advantage to Republicans than originally expected.
Indeed, if the overall political environment remains in the Democrats’ favor — which would be consistent with the historical precedent of the opposition party gaining seats in the first midterm election of a new president — the House is likely to flip back to the Democrats’ control in 2027.
Here’s the lowdown: California’s referendum on redistricting, which passed overwhelmingly on Election Day, will allow Democrats to gain as many as five seats with a new, more-partisan map — with three Republican-held seats (of GOP Reps. Doug LaMalfa, Kevin Kiley and Ken Calvert) all but guaranteed to flip.
That should offset the expected GOP gains in Texas, which started the whole redistricting gamesmanship off with a partisan redraw that guarantees Republicans to pick up at least three Democratic-held seats, with the hope that Republicans can win two additional seats that became more favorable to them.
But there’s a catch with the Texas map. Two of the redrawn districts — the seats of Democratic Reps. Vicente Gonzalez and Henry Cuellar — are in predominantly Hispanic areas along the U.S.-Mexico border that swung dramatically to Trump in 2024, but had a long tradition of voting Democratic before then. If Democrats rebound with Hispanic voters — as happened in New Jersey and Virginia on Election Day — and the national environment remains rough for Republicans, it’s not hard to see the two Democratic incumbents hanging on.
Adding another wrinkle to the GOP’s redistricting plans: A Utah judge rejected the preferred map drawn by Republican state lawmakers, and selected a new map that would guarantee a Democratic district in Salt Lake City. That would automatically flip one seat to the Democrats, given that the state’s current delegation is made up of four Republicans, all in solidly Republican districts.
NEXT STEPS
After Mamdani win, socialists look to challenge Democratic incumbents in NYC
The organized left scored a major victory last week when Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City, elevating to executive office a politician who became one of the nation’s most prominent democratic socialists during the campaign. Now, as the movement seeks to ride momentum from Mamdani’s win and grow its influence at the federal level, some emerging challengers are setting their sights on a handful of pro-Israel New York Democrats in the House — posing what is likely to be the first key test of its political credibility in the upcoming midterm elections, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports.
Challenges ahead: While next year’s primaries are still more than six months away, some early signs indicate that the far left is already facing obstacles in its efforts to target established incumbents like Reps. Dan Goldman and Ritchie Torres, raising questions about its organizational discipline and messaging ability, not to mention alignment with Mamdani — who is now walking a delicate path in seeking buy-in from state leadership to deliver on his ambitious affordability agenda. Jake Dilemani, a Democratic consultant in New York, said “there is and should be euphoria among the left” after Mamdani’s victory, “but that does not necessarily translate into toppling relatively popular incumbents. One swallow does not make a summer,” he told JI on Tuesday.
EVASIVE MANEUVER
Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed sidesteps question on Israel’s right to exist
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed sidestepped a question about Israel’s right to exist during an interview with the anti-Israel media outlet Zeteo last week. Zeteo founder Mehdi Hasan asked El-Sayed how he would respond if and when he faces questions on the campaign trail about whether he supports Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
What he said — and what he didn’t: El-Sayed initially responded by calling the question hypocritical and again dodged when pressed. He said that most U.S. presidents have expressed support for a two-state solution, and “Israel exists. Palestine doesn’t. And so I always wonder why nobody asks me why Palestine doesn’t have a right to exist.” El-Sayed accused the U.S. of supporting “the very people in Israel who want to foreclose on the possibility of Palestine existing. And so to me, frankly, it is about our principles and how we apply them evenly. If you believe in a two-state solution, then what are you doing to make it possible?” he continued.
EXCLUSIVE
Jewish groups blast Torres challenger for featuring antisemitic activist in campaign launch
Major New York Jewish groups criticized former Assemblyman Michael Blake, who is running in the Democratic primary against Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY), for featuring a clip of an influencer who supported the shooting of two Israeli Embassy employees at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington in his campaign launch video, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Pushback: “Hurling a bus load of antisemitic tropes and platforming bigots who cheer antisemitic violence in a launch video is not the pro-humanity flex one thinks it is,” the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York said in a statement. The Anti-Defamation League of New York and New Jersey said that “we can all agree that Michael Blake’s platforming of anti-Zionist influencer Guy Christensen should be roundly condemned.”
comeback campaign
Pro-Israel Democrat Elaine Luria announces bid to reclaim House seat
Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA), who was an outspoken voice in support of Israel and against antisemitism during her time in the House, announced a bid on Wednesday to reclaim the congressional seat she lost in 2022, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Looking back: Luria, who is Jewish, was a leading moderate voice in the House in support of Israel and against antisemitism, at times criticizing members of her own party and breaking with the Biden administration on its Israel policy. She was one of the few House Democrats who consistently opposed efforts by the Biden administration to rejoin the Iran nuclear deal and Luria organized and led a group of pro-Israel House Democrats to speak on the House floor in 2021 in support of Israel and its military operations, responding to a competing effort by far-left Democrats in opposition. She also repeatedly called out antisemitism from Democratic colleagues.
STEPPING DOWN
Ron Dermer, Netanyahu’s right-hand man, resigns from Israeli government
Israel’s influential minister of strategic affairs, Ron Dermer, resigned from his post on Tuesday, three years after assuming the role, Jewish Insider’s Tamara Zieve reports. “This government will be defined both by the attack on October 7th and by the prosecution of the two-year, seven-front, war that followed,” Dermer, widely regarded as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s closest advisor, wrote in his resignation letter.
Staying around: Dermer has led Israel’s ceasefire and hostage-release negotiations since February. He is expected to stay on as Netanyahu’s envoy to continue handling the future of the Gaza portfolio, political sources recently told JI. U.S.-born and a former Israeli ambassador to Washington, Dermer has long played a central role in managing Israel’s relationship with the U.S. “What the future holds for me, I do not know. But I do know this: No matter what I do, I will continue to do my part to help secure the future of the Jewish people,” Dermer said.
history lessons
Clintons tie Trump’s Gaza peace plan to Oslo Accords in Rabin memorial discussion
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Monday that President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza could be a “new moment of hope and possibility.” But it will only be successful if there is “a level of organization” applied to the implementation, a lesson that can be drawn from the Oslo process, she said, during a panel hosted by Columbia University’s Institute of Global Politics, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.
What she said: “One thing that can be learned from the Oslo process and applied to the situation now with the peace plan is that there was a process,” Clinton said. The event commemorated the 30th anniversary of the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was murdered by a right-wing extremist, soon after signing the Oslo II Accords peace agreements with then-Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat in 1995 — two years after the signing of the Oslo I Accords. “You have to have a level of organization, it can’t just have few people at the top — whether it be a president or special envoy, as necessary as they are, you have to have teams of people who can be working with their counterparts,” continued Clinton, who is a professor of international and public affairs at Columbia.
What he said: In 40-minute remarks, former President Bill Clinton, who mediated the Oslo Accords signing — which he hosted at the White House — spoke about his close personal and professional relationship with Rabin, calling the assassination one of the worst days of his life. “We have to begin again, where the trust level is low,” Clinton said of achieving Israeli-Palestinian peace. “People in power might not be in favor of giving up on anything now.”
Worthy Reads
Hate on the Right, Then and Now: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens draws comparisons between today’s rising trend of antisemitism within the GOP to past iterations of antisemitic ideology on the right. “The MAGA movement is not antisemitic. But many of its core convictions are antisemitic-adjacent — that is, they have a habit of leading in an anti-Jewish direction. Opposition to free trade, or to a welcoming immigration policy, or to international law that crimps national sovereignty, are legitimate, if often wrongheaded, political positions. But they have a way of melding with hoary stereotypes about ‘the International Jew; working across borders against the interests of so-called real Americans.” [NYTimes]
After Mamdani, Healing Divisions: Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove, senior rabbi at Park Avenue Synagogue on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, reflects in the Forward about how the New York City Jewish community must unite in the aftermath of Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s victory. “For me, personally, the fact that about a third of New York City’s Jewish voters checked the box for Mamdani is totally bewildering. I am not unaware of the bigger political trends, the shortcomings of the other candidates, or the systemic challenges our city faces; I understand why Mamdani won. But for me, his anti-Zionist rhetoric and his intent to shut down research and economic partnerships between Israel and New York — to name but a few of his promises that would negatively impact our community — not only disqualified him from receiving my vote, but were a meaningful enough concern that I chose to publicly urge Jews and their allies to vote against him as well. And yet, it would seem that what was self-evident to me was not so self-evident to a sizeable percentage of my kinfolk. … We need to learn to walk together again. If, as I have repeatedly claimed, ahavat yisrael — love of the Jewish people — is my North Star, then it is a principle I must uphold even and especially when it is uncomfortable to do so. It is a love that must extend to Jews whose views I neither share nor understand.” [Forward]
Takeover on the Quad: John Ellis, professor emeritus of German literature at the University of California, Santa Cruz, argues in The Wall Street Journal for placing universities in a “receivership” to address the dominance of left-wing ideology in higher education. “The discrepancy between what we fund the campuses for and what they are doing is enormous. Promotion of knowledge and understanding has given way to inculcation of a poisonous fringe ideology. Students are encouraged to despise their society and kept ignorant of anything that might make them think otherwise. … The only viable solution is to place schools in ‘receivership,’ a well-established procedure to reform ailing college departments. A new chairman is imposed on a department with a free hand to make whatever appointments he thinks necessary to restore the department to health. By action of lawmakers or trustees, a new president can be imposed on a campus with a mandate to return the school to its proper mission by appointing subordinate administrators, especially deans, committed to reform.” [WSJ]
Investing in the Jewish Future: In Sapir, Jordan Chandler Hirsch argues that the Jewish people should establish a sovereign wealth fund to secure long-term communal and national resilience. “A wealth fund would allow the Jewish community to invite allies and skeptics alike into mutually beneficial investments. It could help key players solve their problems and achieve their goals, thereby securing support for ours. Skeptics who distrust our institutionalism might respect our show of independence. Anti-establishment forces might welcome Jewish capital that strengthens their projects. Most important, a wealth fund could transform both our psychology and our posture — from supplicants seeking protection into partners offering opportunity. Despite its corporate veneer, a wealth fund would not merely reproduce institutionalism. If shtadlanut sought seats at the institutional table, a wealth fund would build its own table and invite others in.” [SAPIR]
Word on the Street
President Donald Trump sent a letter to Israeli President Isaac Herzog calling on him to “fully pardon” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, describing the corruption case against him as “a political, unjustified prosecution.” Herzog’s office put out a statement saying that while he “holds President Trump in the highest regard … anyone seeking a Presidential pardon must submit a formal request in accordance with the established procedures”…
Following a joint meeting in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas announced the creation of a joint committee “for the consolidation of the state of Palestine,” which will work towards drafting a “constitution” for such a state…
Iran has smuggled advanced armaments to terror groups in the West Bank over several months, the Washington Free Beacon reports, including rockets, explosive drones, anti-tank missiles and rocket-propelled grenades, hoping to use it as another launch pad in addition to Gaza to attack Israel…
Sens. Jim Risch (R-ID), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the Capitol on Tuesday. A person familiar with the situation told Jewish Insider that Van Hollen had “reiterated his support for the lifting of the Caesar sanctions while also stressing his long-held position that the U.S. must ensure that the Government of Syria complies with the six conditions included in the amendment he and Senator Graham added to the NDAA”…
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) urged the State Department to take action to ensure the release of Kamran Hekmati, an Iranian-American dual citizen and Suozzi constituent imprisoned in Iran. “This is about more than one man. It’s about defending the basic rights of American citizens abroad and standing up to regimes that traffic in hostage diplomacy,” Suozzi said…
Rep. Gabe Amo (D-RI) led 125 House Democrats in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio seeking “clarity on your plan to ensure desperately needed humanitarian aid reaches Palestinian civilians in Gaza” and urging that aid be distributed through “reputable international institutions”…
Saudi Arabia is set to host a U.S.-Saudi investment summit at the Kennedy Center in Washington next Wednesday, a day after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman‘s visit to the White House…
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) met with Malcolm Jallow, an anti-Israel left-wing member of the Swedish parliament who has espoused antisemitic views and has associations with pro-Hamas individuals…
The New York Times speaks to Iranians deported back to Iran by the Trump administration in the first U.S.-chartered deportation flight to the country in September…
The New York Times profiles Jack Schlossberg, grandson of President John F. Kennedy, who is preparing to run for Congress in New York’s 12th Congressional District…
After receiving backlash for canceling planned shows in Israel as a result of pressure by the BDS movement, British comedian John Cleese said he was only postponing the shows “following advice about safety.” The “Monty Python” actor, who has a history of anti-Israel commentary on social media, claimed he is “hugely fond of Israeli audiences”…
Argentine President Javier Milei met with Rabbi David Yosef, the Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel; Isaac Sacca, the Sephardic chief rabbi of Argentina; and Eyal Sela, the Israeli ambassador to Argentina…
Israeli authorities arrested four suspects after dozens of settlers launched an arson attack in the Palestinian villages of Bei Lid and Deir Sharaf in the West Bank….
Israeli actress Gal Gadot won Israel’s Genesis Prize, sometimes called the “Jewish Nobel,” for her outspoken support of Israel in Hollywood since the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks. Gadot said she will donate the $1 million award to organizations “that will help Israel heal”…
Israeli pop star Noa Kirel and soccer player Daniel Peretz tied the knot on Tuesday in an A-lister affair in Jaffa: spotted at the nuptials were Israeli celebrities Eden Daniel Gabay, Idan Raichel, Eran Zahavi, Reef Neeman, Ron Bitton, Ron Aluf and Mor Hamami…
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts recently toured a site in Saudi Arabia for a possible Universal theme park location, raising speculation that he might bring in Saudi funds for a potential Comcast bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery…
Wonderful, an Israeli AI startup, has secured $100 million in a Series A funding round led by Index Ventures, with backing from Insight Partners, IVP, Bessemer and Vine Ventures…
Song of the Day
Shulem Lemmer shared on social media “The March Medley” he performed together in June with the Israel Symphony Orchestra Rishon LeZion, featuring Gur’s “Shir Hamaalos” and Modzitz’s “Ein Kitzvah,” at the 2025 MDA Chassidut B’Class concert in the Caesarea amphitheater.
Birthdays
Rabbi of the Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest, Hungary, Róbert Frölich turns 60…
Co-founder and dean of the Talmudical Yeshiva of Philadelphia, Rabbi Shmuel Kamenetsky turns 101… Professor emerita of history at Columbia University and expert on Japan, Carol Gluck turns 84… Author and senior fellow at USC’s Annenberg School, Morley Winograd turns 83… Accountant and former PwC partner in Phoenix, Steven M. Scheiner, CPA… Former New York state senator, he is a descendant of Rabbi Shmuel Salant, the former Ashkenazic chief rabbi of Jerusalem, Stephen M. Saland turns 82… Sportscaster for “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video, after more than 50 years at NBC and ABC, Al Michaels turns 81… U.S. senator (D-RI), Jack Reed turns 76… Attorney in Brooklyn, Bernard C. Wachsman… Member of the New York state Assembly since 2006, her district includes Manhattan’s Upper West Side, Linda B. Rosenthal turns 68… Author of young-adult fiction and winner of the 2015 National Book Award for Challenger Deep, Neal Shusterman turns 63… Author, journalist and former political advisor to Al Gore and Bill Clinton, Naomi Rebekah Wolf turns 63… University of Chicago professor, he won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics, Michael Kremer turns 61… Mayor of Oakland, Calif., until 2023, Elizabeth Beckman “Libby” Schaaf turns 60… Partner in the Chicago office of Kirkland & Ellis, Sanford E. “Sandy” Perl turns 60… White House chief of staff for the last two years of the Biden administration, Jeffrey Zients turns 59… British journalist and political correspondent for BBC News, Joanne “Jo” Coburn turns 58… Hasidic lecturer with many thousands of followers, Rabbi Avraham Elimelech Biderman turns 58… SVP and general manager of MLB’s Minnesota Twins from 2016 until 2024, Thad Levine turns 54… Member of the Knesset until 2019 for the Yisrael Beiteinu party, Robert Ilatov turns 54… Restaurant critic and food writer for the Boston Globe, Devra First turns 53… Israeli fashion model and actress, Nina Brosh turns 50… Former member of the Knesset for the United Torah Judaism party, Eliyahu Hasid turns 49… Campus support director at Hillel International, Aviva Zucker Snyder… Actress best known for her roles on “The Young and the Restless” and “The Bold and the Beautiful,” Kelly Kruger turns 44… Co-founder of Purple Acorn, Dave Weinberg… Assistant professor of Jewish studies at Oberlin College, Matthew D. Berkman turns 41… Director of strategic talent initiatives at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Spencer F. Lucker… New Jersey-based primary care physician known as Doctor Mike, he is an internet celebrity on YouTube and Instagram, Mikhail Varshavski turns 36… Activist in the fight against antisemitism throughout the U.S., Adela Cojab turns 29… Catcher in the Washington Nationals organization, Cameron J. Stubbs turns 29…
Pro-Israel Democratic Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Ritchie Torres and Dan Goldman are facing long-shot challengers from the far left
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images
New York City Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani celebrates during an election night event at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater in Brooklyn, New York on November 4, 2025.
The organized left scored a major victory last week when Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City, elevating to executive office a politician who became one of the nation’s most prominent democratic socialists during the campaign.
Now, as the movement seeks to ride momentum from Mamdani’s win and grow its influence at the federal level, some emerging challengers are setting their sights on a handful of pro-Israel Democrats in the House — posing what is likely to be the first key test of its political credibility in the upcoming midterm elections.
While next year’s primaries are still more than six months away, some early signs indicate that the far left is already facing obstacles in its efforts to target established incumbents, raising questions about its organizational discipline and messaging ability, not to mention alignment with Mamdani — who is now walking a delicate path in seeking buy-in from state leadership to deliver on his ambitious affordability agenda.
Jake Dilemani, a Democratic consultant in New York, said “there is and should be euphoria among the left” after Mamdani’s victory, “but that does not necessarily translate into toppling relatively popular incumbents.”
“One swallow does not make a summer,” he told Jewish Insider on Tuesday.
In a pair of looming congressional contests in Brooklyn and the Bronx, for instance, potentially divided primary fields are now threatening to split the vote to oppose Reps. Dan Goldman (D-NY) and Ritchie Torres (D-NY), both of whom are preparing to seek reelection amid left-wing backlash over their support for Israel.
Brad Lander, the outgoing comptroller and an ally of Mamdani, has told associates he is planning to challenge Goldman in a progressive district covering parts of Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan, people familiar with his thinking told JI recently.
Lander, who was reportedly boxed out of a top job in Mamdani’s administration over conflict with the mayor-elect, has acknowledged that he is “seriously considering” a House bid, but has yet to confirm his timeline for publicly making a decision. One person familiar with the matter said he is likely to launch a bid after Mamdani assumes office in early January. Lander has denied that there are any tensions with Mamdani or his team.
While polling has shown that Lander would be a formidable challenger to Goldman, thanks to his popularity in the district where he once served as a longtime city councilman, some observers have speculated that he could face skepticism from voters who may see his bid as a consolation after failing to secure a role in City Hall.
Lander and Goldman were seen mingling at some of the same receptions during the Somos conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico, last week, but did not appear to interact.
In addition to Lander, Alexa Avilés, a far-left city councilwoman closely aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America, is also weighing a challenge to Goldman, provoking fears among his critics who say he will benefit from a crowded field that helped him secure a narrow victory in his first House primary in 2022.
Yuh-Line Niou, a former state assemblywoman who placed second in that primary, has been considering another bid as well, sources told JI, after she lost by a margin of just two points in a race that centered in part on her controversial support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.
Goldman, for his part, has sought to downplay the role that Israel could play in the race, arguing that the Trump administration presents a more serious threat to his constituents.
But Avilés, for one, is almost certain to raise Israel in a potential primary challenge, owing to her vocal opposition to the war in Gaza, which she has called a genocide, and outspoken criticism of AIPAC. “The tide is turning, but the forces remain pernicious and persistent,” Avilés said during a panel discussion at Somos last week, warning of “a Congress that is very much controlled by AIPAC.”
“Saying no to violence is not a radical idea,” Avilés added in comments hinting at a challenge. “And you know what, y’all? If people are not stepping up, then we need to remove them.”
In the Bronx, Torres, who is among the staunchest defenders of Israel in the House, has already drawn a primary opponent focusing overwhelmingly on his pro-Israel record and contributions from AIPAC, in an effort to channel the anti-establishment zeitgeist that helped boost Mamdani’s insurgent campaign.
Michael Blake, a former state assemblyman who came in eighth place in the New York City mayoral primary, launched his campaign to unseat Torres last week. But he is facing accusations of hypocrisy over his own previous well-documented ties to AIPAC and past statements voicing strong support for Israel — contributing to a somewhat turbulent rollout that has cast doubts on his viability.
On the sidelines of the Somos retreat last Friday, Blake, who has twice visited Israel and spoken at AIPAC events, insisted that “you can be critical of governmental policies” and it “does not make you antisemitic or anti-Israel.”
Blake, who also ran against Torres in a crowded primary in 2020, said he now supports an arms embargo on Israel, but clarified that, if elected, he would continue to vote for defensive aid for its Iron Dome missile-interception system — views that are unlikely to win converts among voters in Riverdale, a predominantly Jewish Bronx neighborhood where Torres has built a loyal following.
“I do think we have to be attentive of the moment that we’re in right now,” Blake said of his thinking last week, while confirming he would “absolutely” seek support from the DSA, which has so far only endorsed candidates running for state office next year.
Marshall Wittmann, an AIPAC spokesperson, said that the group’s “grassroots members understand the stakes in the upcoming midterms and that is why they are deeply motivated and engaged to help elect pro-Israel candidates and defeat detractors.”
Blake cross-endorsed with Mamdani in the primary and has enthusiastically supported the mayor-elect. But Torres, who once cautioned Mamdani was unfit to lead New York City because of his close ties to the DSA, has since spoken positively about the incoming mayor and praised one of his early appointments as “exceptional” on Monday, complicating the political fault lines in the primary.
A lesser-known primary challenger, Andre Easton, is also campaigning against Torres using similarly hostile rhetoric about Israel and AIPAC. Easton, an independent affiliated with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, has said he is running “to fight for the Bronx — not billionaires who fund genocide in Palestine,” and claims that Torres “pockets money from AIPAC” while children in the district “live in poverty.”
Marshall Wittmann, an AIPAC spokesperson, said that the group’s “grassroots members understand the stakes in the upcoming midterms and that is why they are deeply motivated and engaged to help elect pro-Israel candidates and defeat detractors.”
“The track record demonstrates that being pro-Israel is good policy and good politics as 96% of AIPAC endorsed Democrats won their elections last cycle,” he added in a statement to JI on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, another pro-Israel Democrat, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), is expected to draw a more established far-left primary challenger in the coming weeks, setting up a high-profile fight for the Brooklyn House seat he has held for over a decade.
Chi Ossé, a young city councilman and Mamdani ally who has developed a sizable following on social media, is reportedly planning to seek support from the DSA, as he prepares to launch an insurgent bid to topple Jeffries, long a target of the far left. Ossé recently became a member of the DSA after quitting the group in 2020, he said on social media in 2023, noting that when he first left he “wasn’t aligned with the organization” but that there was “no bad blood.”
Still, he may face resistance from Mamdani, who claimed an endorsement from Jeffries late in the election and is hoping to avoid intraparty conflict while balancing a tenuous coalition to advance his daunting campaign pledges. He has also distanced himself from the DSA’s most extreme positions and said their respective platforms are “not the same.”
“It’s not clear that wins from election night will translate into intra-party primary victories in a midterm election,” Basil Smikle, a professor at Columbia’s School of Professional Studies and a Democratic strategist, said on Tuesday. “There’s a lot of time between now and then but the organizing framework has certainly been established to make a strong run.”
Mamdani, who criticized Jeffries’ pro-Israel views before the mayoral election, had reportedly sought to preempt Ossé’s plans to oppose the congressman who could be the next speaker of the House. As the councilman now moves forward against Mamdani’s apparent wishes, the potential primary battle could place the mayor-elect in an uncomfortable position, possibly fueling tensions with an activist base eager to capitalize on his victory. The DSA did not return a request for comment.
Despite such issues, some experts said that the left remains formidable ahead of next year’s primaries, even as it confronts some potential disorganization.
“It’s not clear that wins from election night will translate into intra-party primary victories in a midterm election,” Basil Smikle, a professor at Columbia’s School of Professional Studies and a Democratic strategist, said on Tuesday. “There’s a lot of time between now and then but the organizing framework has certainly been established to make a strong run.”
Hank Sheinkopf, a veteran Democratic strategist, said that “every pro-Israel Democrat is a target for the newly empowered DSA BDS gang,” and warned that incumbents “should be prepared for a long and costly battle.”
Plus, Elaine Luria wants a rematch
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) is joined by Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and other officials for a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon on July 09, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed sidestepped a question about Israel’s right to exist during an interview with the anti-Israel media outlet Zeteo last week, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Zeteo founder Mehdi Hasan asked El-Sayed how he would respond if and when he faces questions on the campaign trail about whether he supports Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. Pressed after initially dodging the question, El-Sayed said, “Israel exists. Palestine doesn’t. And so I always wonder why nobody asks me why Palestine doesn’t have a right to exist.”
El-Sayed also dismissed AIPAC donors as “MAGA billionaires throwing their money around to try to dictate the outcome for a Democratic primary,” though AIPAC has not yet endorsed a candidate in the Michigan Senate race…
Chi Ossé, a far-left Gen Z New York City councilman, is planning to launch a primary challenge to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), The New York Times reports, despite discouragement from his ideological ally, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, who clinched Jeffries’ endorsement shortly before the general election. Ossé’s insistence on running reportedly caused him to be disinvited from Mamdani’s election night party…
Elsewhere in New York, Bruce Blakeman, the first Jewish executive of Nassau County who just won reelection last week, is considering mounting a bid for governor, he told Politico, where he would face off against Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) in the GOP primary. Both are allies of President Donald Trump; Blakeman said he “told [Trump] that I was interested, and he didn’t discourage me. And I think he’s had the same conversation with Elise. I think the president is going to play it out and see what happens at the convention”…
Also throwing her hat in the ring, former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA), a moderate Jewish Democrat with a strong pro-Israel record, plans to launch a comeback campaign tomorrow, Punchbowl reports. Luria would likely be the front-runner in the already crowded Democratic primary to win back Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District from Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-VA), who defeated her in 2022…
Ron Dermer, Israel’s minister of strategic affairs and longtime advisor and confidante to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, resigned from his post today after three years in the role, JI’s Tamara Zieve reports. “This government will be remembered both for the October 7 attack and for its management of the two-year, seven-front war that followed,” Dermer wrote in his resignation letter. Israeli media had reported for months that Dermer’s departure was expected.
Dermer has led Israel’s ceasefire and hostage-release negotiations since February and is expected to stay on as Netanyahu’s envoy to continue handling the future of the Gaza portfolio, political sources recently told JI…
The State Department denied reports today that White House advisor Jared Kushner met with Gaza militia leader Yasser Abu Shabab to discuss ceasefire issues including dozens of Hamas terrorists still “stuck” in tunnels on the Israeli side of the ceasefire lines, though U.S. officials told Axios Kushner did speak with Netanyahu about the issue during their meeting in Jerusalem yesterday, and is eager to resolve it without impact on the next phase of the deal…
Saudi Arabia is set to host a U.S.-Saudi investment summit in Washington next Wednesday, a day after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the White House. An invite obtained by CBS News shows the event taking place at the Kennedy Center, co-hosted by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment and the U.S.-Saudi Business Council…
An undated letter from Houthi Chief of Staff Yusuf Hassan al-Madani to Hamas’ Al Qassam Brigades indicates that the Yemeni terror group has halted its attacks on Israel and ships in the Red Sea amid the ongoing ceasefire: “We are closely monitoring developments and declare that if the enemy resumes its aggression against Gaza, we will return to our military operations deep inside the Zionist entity, and we will reinstate the ban on Israeli navigation in the Red and Arabian Seas,” the letter reads…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for an analysis on congressional redistricting efforts and additional reporting on Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s Washington meetings.
The International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries kicks off tomorrow, drawing 6,200 rabbis from 111 countries to New York City.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama will appear at Washington’s Sixth & I Synagogue tomorrow evening to discuss her forthcoming book, The Look.
Stories You May Have Missed
BETTER TOGETHER
Black and Jewish college students explore shared adversity and allyship at DC-area ‘Unity Dinner’
Sponsored by Robert Kraft’s Blue Square Alliance, Hillel International and the United Negro College Fund, the event brought together over 100 students in an effort to rebuild the Black-Jewish alliance of the Civil Rights Movement
PEACEKEEPING PROSPECTS
Concerns in Israel as U.S. seeks United Nations mandate for international force in Gaza
Israeli experts are pessimistic about the effectiveness and safety of a U.N.-led force, given Israel’s experience with similar mandates in the past
Plus, Laura Loomer turns on Israel aid
Syrian Presidency
President Donald Trump greets Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa in the Oval Office on Nov. 10, 2025.
Good Monday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Despite the historic nature of Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s White House visit today, his meeting with President Donald Trump was kept a relatively low-key affair. Al-Sharaa entered through a back door and didn’t receive the usual greeting photo op with Trump, and the meeting was closed to the press.
The two leaders made news nonetheless: Syria is now set to join the U.S.-led campaign against ISIS, Trump and al-Sharaa discussed reopening respective embassies in Damascus and Washington and the Treasury Department issued a new order extending the suspension of U.S. sanctions on Syria for six months.
Ibrahim Olabi, Syria’s U.N. ambassador, said the two leaders also discussed a prospective Israel-Syria security agreement. “The term used frequently during the meeting by President Trump and Secretary [of State Marco] Rubio was ‘let’s get this done,’” Olabi said…
Trump has encouraged lawmakers to fully lift the congressionally mandated U.S. sanctions on Syria, but Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), a Trump ally and the chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, did not commit to supporting sanctions relief when he held his own meeting with al-Sharaa yesterday, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Mast and al-Sharaa “had a long and serious conversation about how to build a future for the people of Syria free of war, ISIS, and extremism,” Mast said in a statement, but offered no words of praise for the Syrian leader…
Sergio Gor was sworn in as U.S. ambassador to India today to unusual fanfare — he and Trump were joined in the Oval Office by Rubio; Vice President JD Vance; Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent; Attorney General Pam Bondi; U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro; Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Jim Risch (R-ID); Katie Britt (R-AL) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL); Erika Kirk and Fox News host Laura Ingraham, among others.
Swearing in Gor, who used to serve as the head of the Presidential Personnel Office where he wielded significant influence in assuring political hires shared his skepticism of American engagement abroad, Vance said, “We have such a crowd here, you’d think we were swearing in a vice president”…
Laura Loomer, a right-wing Trump advisor who has historically maintained pro-Israel stances, wrote on social media today that, after spending “an incredible week” in Israel, she has “reached a firm conclusion: Israel must end its dependence on U.S. aid and the U.S. must end all aid to Israel.”
“I truly hope by the end of the Trump administration and by the beginning of a new administration in 2028 that we see zero aid flowing to Israel,” she wrote, calling it a “win-win” for the U.S., which will no longer be a “global baby sitter,” and for Israel, which will be free to conduct its wars as it wishes.
In response, Democratic Majority for Israel accused Loomer of continuing “a troubling pattern on the Right — embracing anti-Israel policies & undermining our allies,” in the vein of Tucker Carlson and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA)…
Christine Pelosi, daughter of Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who was thought to be considering a run for her mother’s seat as she retires, announced today that she is not running for Congress. Instead, Pelosi is launching a campaign for the state Senate seat currently held by Scott Wiener, who is running for her mother’s San Francisco congressional district…
New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani named two of his top advisors today: Dean Fuleihan to be first deputy mayor and Elle Bisgaard-Church as his chief of staff.
Bisgaard-Church is a democratic socialist who was part of Mamdani’s campaign inner circle. Fuleihan, on the other hand, is a city and state government veteran; he previously served in the same role under former Mayor Bill de Blasio and as his budget director, as well as a budget expert in the state Legislature, among other roles. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY), who was at times at odds with Mamdani during his campaign, called Fuleihan’s appointment “exceptional … in more ways than one”…
Danielle Sassoon, the former interim U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York who resigned her post rather than drop a case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams at the request of the Trump administration, has joined the law office of Clement & Murphy, The New York Times reports. The conservative boutique firm is known for its “longstanding opposition to executive branch overreach”…
The Wall Street Journal reports on Yale’s attempt to stay out of the line of fire in Trump’s crusade against higher education, including President Maurie McInnis’ increased government lobbying expenditures and a student forum where classmates encouraged each other to refrain from disruptive anti-Israel protests: “‘The only thing continuing to protest will do is to take education and opportunities away from the rest of us,’ said one post [on the forum]. ‘Ppl need to stop being stupid and selfish and realize they will gain no ground under this administration on the Israel issue’”…
Palantir CEO Alex Karp defended his support of Israel in an interview with WIRED, released today, saying, “Israel is a country with a GDP smaller than Switzerland, and it’s under massive attack. Some critiques are legitimate, but others are aggressive in attacking Israel. My reaction is, well, then I’m just going to defend them.”
“When people are fair to Israel and treat it like any other nation, which I don’t think they do, I will be much more willing to express in public the things I express in private to Israelis”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for reporting on veteran journalists Bianna Golodryga and Yonit Levi’s new book, Don’t Feed the Lion, which they will launch at Temple Emanu-El in New York City tomorrow night, joined in conversation by comedian Elon Gold.
This evening, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa will appear on Fox News’ “Special Report” with Bret Baier.
Stories You May Have Missed
SCENE AT SOMOS
Jewish leaders begin outreach to incoming Mamdani administration, sensitively
At the post-election Somos conference, Jewish officials tried to find areas of common ground with the new mayor
DAYTONA X DAMASCUS DIPLOMACY
The influencer couple selling Syria on Capitol Hill
JI asked senior New York Democratic officials and Jewish community leaders to discuss the top threats that a Mamdani administration could pose to Jewish life in the city
At the post-election Somos conference, Jewish officials tried to find areas of common ground with the new mayor
Angel Valentin/Getty Images
New York City Mayor elect Zohran Mamdani meets with the press after he joined members of the Centro Islamico del Caribe -Masjid Ebadur Rahman mosque in prayer, on November 7, 2025 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Mamdani was in San Juan for the annual SOMOS political retreat.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The humid air was swelling with anticipation as thousands of New York politicos descended on Puerto Rico’s capital last week to attend the annual Somos conference, a multiday marathon of post-election elbow-rubbing where receptions and panels occur alongside covert negotiations and late-night schmoozing at local bars and hotels.
The extended Democratic gathering, which kicked off on Wednesday and continued into the weekend, was adjusting to the ascendant political order led by Zohran Mamdani, whose victory in New York City’s mayoral election earlier that week had upended the Democratic establishment and led to new alliances that until recently would have seemed improbable.
While Mamdani was still largely unknown during Somos last year, just weeks after announcing his long-shot mayoral bid, the 34-year-old democratic socialist and state assemblyman now seized the spotlight as attendees swarmed his arrival Thursday at the Caribe Hilton, where the incoming mayor was later fêted by some of the state’s top elected officials at a crowded beachside reception.
For many Jewish leaders who joined the Caribbean confab, however, the feeling was far more subdued, as they openly grappled with the sensitive question of how to work with a mayor-elect whose stridently anti-Israel views conflict with their own core values.
It is a wholly unfamiliar position for Jewish leaders and mainstream Jewish institutions in New York City, where the mayors have long been proudly pro-Israel. But Mamdani’s stunning rise challenged the conventional thinking that a winning candidate in New York, a place with the largest Jewish community of any city in the world, must show strong support for Israel. In breaking with decades of precedent, Mamdani still faced skepticism from a significant number of Jewish voters who cast their ballots for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who lost the Democratic primary and then ran as an independent. Exit polls showed that Cuomo, a vocal supporter of Israel, had doubled Mamdani among Jewish New Yorkers, with around two-thirds of the vote.
As Mamdani prepares to assume office in less than two months, Jewish leaders mingling at Somos were freshly processing his looming mayoralty with a mix of shock, hesitation and bemused detachment. Even if some voiced hope for a positive relationship, most were not ready to specify how they planned to move forward or what was expected of his administration.
One well-connected Jewish attendee cited the five stages of grief in characterizing the reactions among Jewish community leaders who had largely resisted engaging with Mamdani’s campaign. Many of them, it seemed, were dealing with the first stage of denial — and were far from finally reaching acceptance.
“We’re so screwed,” one Jewish political activist was overheard lamenting at an event on Friday evening.
Still, some Jewish community leaders who spoke with Jewish Insider over the course of the retreat suggested they were willing to give Mamdani the latitude to follow through on areas where they are aligned, pointing to a sort of provisional detente in the aftermath of a bruising and emotionally fraught election.
“The mainstream Jewish community is open to dealing with reality,” Noam Gilboord, the chief operating and community relations officer at the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, said diplomatically while attending the conference.
The JCRC, for its part, has not yet held any direct meetings with Mamdani, though members of his team privately reached out about some key issues during the election and have continued to stay in touch, according to Mark Treyger, the group’s chief executive. The campaign gave a heads-up to JCRC leadership, for instance, before Mamdani publicly announced that he would ask Jessica Tisch to stay on as police commissioner, an encouraging choice to Jewish community leaders who favored her for the role.
“We are here to represent the transition with the Jewish community, and we’re so happy to be here,” Ali Najmi, a Mamdani confidante and chief counsel to the mayor-elect’s transition team, told JI in a brief exchange. “We see so many good friends and old friends, and we’re so looking forward to our new friends.”
Mamdani’s team also checked in with the JCRC after he had won the primary to give assurances that the newly anointed Democratic nominee was committed to providing continued security for its annual Israel Day on Fifth parade — even if he was unlikely to attend, as a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against the Jewish state.
While Mamdani was absent from a Thursday night reception the JCRC hosted with the UJA-Federation of New York, he sent two of his top aides, Ali Najmi and Elle Bisgaard-Church, to join the event instead. They were warmly greeted by attendees in a public easing of tensions that would have been difficult to imagine just a few weeks ago.
“We are here to represent the transition with the Jewish community, and we’re so happy to be here,” Najmi, a Mamdani confidante and chief counsel to the mayor-elect’s transition team, told JI in a brief exchange. “We see so many good friends and old friends, and we’re so looking forward to our new friends.”
Najmi did not share further details regarding the transition’s formal plans to address Jewish issues, steps that are certain to be aggressively scrutinized in the coming months.
Yeruchim Silber, the director of New York government relations at Agudath Israel of America, an Orthodox advocacy group, said he appreciated the outreach and looked forward to meeting with Najmi again. “We’re hopeful that we could always find some common ground and work together,” he told JI during the reception. “Look, the mayor-elect said very clearly in his victory speech that he’s going to tackle antisemitism,” he added, “so we’ll take him at his word.”
“My understanding is there is interest in more formal Jewish outreach” from Mamdani’s team, said Phylisa Wisdom, the executive director of New York Jewish Agenda, a liberal Zionist group that has been receptive to the mayor-elect. Wisdom, who joined a private conversation with Mamdani at a Reform synagogue in Brooklyn before the election, said the appearance of his aides at the reception on Thursday demonstrated “a desire to be in all kinds of Jewish spaces they may not have been during the election,” in order to “build relationships and show goodwill.”
“This is a very, very divided time for the city, I think I can acknowledge that,” Mark Levine, the incoming city comptroller who endorsed Mamdani, said in his remarks to the room.
Mamdani, whose presence at formal Somos events drew throngs of eager admirers seeking selfies with the mayor-elect, likewise steered clear of an annual Shabbat gathering convened by the Met Council, the Jewish anti-poverty charity. Despite his victory, the event, which featured Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), New York state Attorney General Letitia James and other prominent officials, made no direct allusion to Mamdani — further highlighting his uncomfortable relationship with the Jewish community.
Instead, the speakers at the Met Council’s widely attended reception zeroed in largely on such issues as hunger, poverty and the Trump administration’s efforts to withhold payments for food stamps amid the government shutdown.
“This is a very, very divided time for the city, I think I can acknowledge that,” Mark Levine, the incoming city comptroller who endorsed Mamdani, said in his remarks to the room.
Levine, who is Jewish, is now facing pressure from some Mamdani allies to divest the city from Israel bonds. He has refused to change course, saying last week that he has “criticism of the Israeli government” but still maintains “deep personal ties to Israel.” Mamdani, meanwhile, has voiced support for ending “the practice of purchasing Israel bonds,” though Levine has indicated he does not believe the mayor-elect has the power to enforce such a policy.
The Shabbat reception was disrupted by anti-Israel protesters two years ago, weeks after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks. But no such demonstrations occurred last Friday.
Mamdani, who will soon become New York City’s first Muslim and South Asian mayor, has frequently vowed to fight rising antisemitism. The day after the election, he swiftly moved to condemn vandalism of a Jewish day school in Brooklyn that was defaced by swastika graffiti, calling the attack a “disgusting and heartbreaking act of antisemitism” and pledging to “always stand steadfast with our Jewish neighbors to root the scourge of antisemitism out of our city.”
In his outreach to different parts of the Jewish community and in his public remarks during the election, Mamdani called for increased funding to prevent hate crimes and boosting police protection at Jewish institutions. He has expressed interest in a city curriculum backed by leading Jewish groups, even as it uses a definition of Zionism contradicting his own views on Israel. Mamdani has said he does not recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
Despite his pledges to counter antisemitism, that tension underscores how many Jewish leaders see his positions as an active threat and an impediment to upholding support for Israel, as the war in Gaza has fueled deep divisions in the Democratic Party.
Mamdani’s anti-Israel stances have provoked concerns that he will act on his views when he takes office. He has indicated, for instance, that he would reassess the partnership between Cornell University and Israel’s Technion, situated on Roosevelt Island. He has also pledged to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes if he steps foot in New York City, in a controversial move that legal experts have questioned as legally dubious.
Mamdani has faced scrutiny for his ties to the Democratic Socialists of America, whose avowedly anti-Zionist mission includes demands that the mayor-elect implement several policies that would sever New York City’s relations with Israel. His refusal to explicitly condemn calls to “globalize the intifada” have otherwise continued to frustrate Jewish community leaders.
Robert Tucker, a Jewish philanthropist who had served as the commissioner of New York City’s Fire Department until last week, announced that he was resigning after Mamdani’s win, reportedly owing to the mayor-elect’s anti-Zionist stances.
But some Jewish leaders at Somos speculated that Mamdani may now see his vocal opposition to Israel as an albatross as he seeks to enact an ambitious affordability plan that will need buy-in from the state leadership.
During his time at Somos, the mayor-elect seemed careful to largely avoid the issue. “I will make clear that we are not looking to remake New York City in my image,” he said in remarks at a labor breakfast Saturday. “We are looking to remake it in the image of struggling workers across the five boroughs.”
In comments to a mosque he visited in San Juan, where the imam had mentioned Palestine during his own sermon, Mamdani spoke in metaphorical terms as he addressed the audience. “If you are not at the table, you may find yourself on the menu,” he noted. “It was a Muslim brother, Malcolm X, who reminded us that sitting at the table does not make you a diner. You have to be eating some of what’s on that plate.”
Still, some of Mamdani’s allies on the far left indicated that they were eager to use momentum from his victory to push a more hostile view of Israel into the mainstream discourse and to challenge incumbents who accept donations from AIPAC while promoting pro-Israel policies.
In a panel discussion on Thursday billed as “Colonialism, Resistance and Solidarity: Puerto Rico and Palestine,” Mamdani’s supporters — including City Councilmember Alexa Avilés, Beth Miller of Jewish Voice for Peace Action and Linda Sarsour, a Palestinian-American activist who has spread antisemitic rhetoric — were emboldened by his recent win, as attendees chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestina will be free!” and “Viva, viva Palestina!” Sarsour described Mamdani’s election as “a new day” and said “we’re not going back.”
“Being someone who supports the Palestinian people is no longer a political liability,” Sarsour, who has vowed to hold Mamdani “accountable” as mayor, told the room. “It is what gets you elected into office.”
In statements following the election, a range of Jewish organizations promised to hold Mamdani responsible for keeping Jews in New York City safe. The mayor-elect’s “victory marks the beginning of a new political chapter for New York, one that many in our community view with enormous concern,” Eric Goldstein, the CEO of the UJA-Federation of New York, said in a letter to supporters. “His rhetoric on Israel and Zionism raises serious questions about whether Jewish New Yorkers will continue to feel seen and protected in the very city we indelibly helped build and grow.”
He said the Jewish community would be watching closely to ensure “that antisemitism is not given any oxygen in our neighborhoods,” adding that “actions matter more” than “words.”
Rabbi Ammiel Hirsh, who leads Stephen Wise Free Synagogue on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, said in a post-election sermon that he “will readily engage in dialogue” with Mamdani if he chooses to reach out. “We will support Mayor Mamdani’s policies where we can — and oppose them when we must,” he concluded.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who, at Somos, celebrated Mamdani’s win, also stressed to reporters on the sidelines of the conference that Jewish New Yorkers still need to “see action” from the mayor-elect to address their concerns. “That’s one area where I know that there’s some opportunities for him to demonstrate, as he has said, but also demonstrate that he is there to protect all New Yorkers, to protect anyone’s right to worship or their beliefs but also their institutions,” she explained.
The Anti-Defamation League, for its part, launched a “Mamdani Monitor” to track policies that could impact Jewish safety and security. Jewish leaders in attendance at Somos, however, voiced reservations with the effort, suggesting they did not see it as productive as some in the community look for common ground to work with the mayor-elect.
Others voiced hope that a leading candidate for City Council speaker, Julie Menin, who is Jewish, would serve as a counterweight to Mamdani — in contrast with a leftist rival, Crystal Hudson, seen more as an ally of the mayor-elect. Menin, who declined to join a meeting between Mamdani and Jewish officials in the primary, is known as an outspoken supporter of Israel in the City Council.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who, at Somos, celebrated Mamdani’s win, also stressed to reporters on the sidelines of the conference that Jewish New Yorkers still need to “see action” from the mayor-elect to address their concerns. “That’s one area where I know that there’s some opportunities for him to demonstrate, as he has said, but also demonstrate that he is there to protect all New Yorkers, to protect anyone’s right to worship or their beliefs but also their institutions,” she explained.
Hochul, for her part, has also drawn backlash from Jewish donors for choosing to back Mamdani’s campaign in the general election, people familiar with the situation told JI. “She’s got a lot to prove,” one Jewish leader said of the governor, long regarded as a staunch defender of Israel.
Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), a pro-Israel Jewish Democrat who declined to endorse Mamdani in the general election, told JI at Somos that, despite their disagreements on Israel, he was looking forward to working with the mayor-elect on areas of alignment such as cost of living issues.
But some Jewish community activists were more suspicious of the incoming mayor. One Brooklyn organizer dismissed the possibility of working with Mamdani outright, saying that his stances on Israel had foreclosed any hope of finding common ground, even on unrelated issues.
Leon Goldenberg, an Orthodox business leader in Brooklyn who serves as an executive board member of the Flatbush Jewish Community Coalition, which endorsed Cuomo in the general election, told JI that he has been struggling to decide whether he will ask Mamdani for a meeting.
“I’m really at a loss,” he said on Thursday. “What are we going to talk about, Israel?”
The FJCC itself, which long enjoyed a close relationship with outgoing Mayor Eric Adams, was more optimistic, according to Josh Mehlman, the group’s chairman. “We have met, and will meet with them again,” he said of Mamdani’s team. “We are confident we can work together for the best interest of the Flatbush community and the Orthodox Jewish community citywide.”
Fearing a pullback of NYPD resources, the Community Security Initiative has formed ‘Task Force Z’ to prepare for potential changes under the incoming mayor
Adam Gray/Getty Images
NYPD Strategic Response Group (SRG) stand guard outside of 26 Federal Plaza on October 21, 2025 in New York City.
New York City’s leading Jewish security organization has prepared a new set of strategies to respond to policies that the city’s Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani might put into place that would affect public safety.
Among the primary concerns of Mitch Silber, executive director of the Community Security Initiative and former director of NYPD intelligence analysis, is Mamdani’s vow to cut the police department’s Strategic Response Group.
“SRG is what essentially stands in between ‘Free Palestine’ protesters and the Jewish community,” Silber told Jewish Insider on Thursday. Disbanding SRG “will diminish public security and security for the Jewish community,” said Silber. Mamdani pledged he would disband the force as mayor in December 2024, saying it had “cost taxpayers millions in lawsuit settlements and brutalized countless New Yorkers exercising their first amendment rights.”
SRG was created after the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks so that New York City could be prepared in the event of similar multi-site attacks. “There’s no way CSI could replicate that,” Silber said.
But there are some elements of what SRG does that Silber said CSI, which is a partnership between the UJA-Federation of New York and the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York that relies on funds from private donors, “might be able to step up and, to some degree, fill a gap.”
Immediately after Mamdani won the Democratic primary in June, CSI formed “Task Force Z,” a group of senior regional security directors charged with understanding what policies Mamdani, as mayor, might put into place that would affect public safety and Jewish security in the city, and began to prepare strategies to deal with challenges.
One of SRG’s primary missions is protest management, such as responding to the anti-Israel encampment on Columbia University’s campus last year. “Having volunteers be trained as how to be a buffer in a protest is something that we’re looking at if need be,” Silber told JI.
Asked how likely Mamdani is to be able to fulfill his pledge of disbanding SRG, Silber said, “The mayor in New York City calls the shots and the police commissioner either gets on board or gets a new job. If Mamdani wants to get rid of SRG, he’s going to get rid of SRG because he’s going to hire a police commissioner who will do it.”
Another threat to the Jewish community’s safety, said Silber, is Mamdani’s desire to reduce NYPD overtime pay.
“The Jewish community is one of the primary beneficiaries of NYPD’s overtime — when NYPD responds because it’s the High Holidays, or there’s an event overseas, they have to use overtime to do it. So if the police department cuts overtime that will cut the Jewish community’s security,” Silber said.
Already, the NYPD has just below 35,000 employees. “The last time the NYPD was 35,000 was 1994 when there were a million less people in the city,” Silber said. “We’re at an extremely low number and Mamdani isn’t going to increase the number of police.”
To help fill the gap, CSI’s new plans involve increased partnerships with other Jewish volunteer security groups.
“Who can we partner with on the ground who is capable, has resources and is proven the community can trust? Some of that is volunteer community security patrols called Shomrim and Shmira that are very connected to their respective communities in Crown Heights, Borough Park, Flatbush, Queens and Far Rockaway,” Silber told JI. “We’ve worked with them in the past and found them to be very capable. They are already doing some of the job that the NYPD would do but because the department is so resource short, when there’s a funeral or wedding in the neighborhood, NYPD calls these groups and asks them to use their own patrol cars. So it’s already happening and we anticipate, as the number of cops in a given precinct continues to fall, Shomrim and Shmira can really amplify our security efforts. These groups need resources, more vehicles, vests and radios if they are going to be a deterrent.”
“We’re finding out what these groups need and then will have conversations with donors,” continued Silber.
In Manhattan and Bronx neighborhoods, CSI is turning to its partnership with the Community Security Service, which has a network of more than 2,000 volunteers across New York City.
Richard Priem, CEO of CSS, told JI that the group has “contingency plans to address different scenarios including gaps in coverage or surges in requests for CSS support — whether from synagogues seeking training for their members to join our volunteer network, Jewish organizations requesting CSS volunteers to protect their events or parents serving as eyes and ears at their children’s day schools.”
“There will also be a fund for private security like we did after the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks [in Israel],” Silber said. “UJA will give us a fund for when a school or institution is having an event and doesn’t have enough security.”
CSI is also coordinating with Jewish security leadership groups in cities including Johannesburg, South Africa, Mexico City and Toronto “to try to understand how to protect the Jewish community when police don’t respond in a way that you expect them to,” said Silber.
“That informs some of our efforts as well,” he said. “They’ve invested very robustly in control rooms and camera systems so that they have situational awareness of what’s going on. That’s something we’re taking a closer look at.”
But the magnitude of New York City’s population — with about 1 million Jews — poses additional challenges. “Nevertheless, we may look more closely at incorporating cameras into security,” Silber said.
As NYPD officers are increasingly expressing interest in leaving the department, according to Silber, he said CSI is fielding inquiries “looking for landing when Mamdani comes in.”
The group is “looking into trying to figure out who might best fit in our team.”
Plus, Treasury targets Hezbollah financiers
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The Kazakhstan national flag flutters in the wind on a flagpole.
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The Abraham Accords is expected to gain another participant this evening, though in a first, the country is not joining as a show of peace with Israel — since the new addition, the Muslim-majority central Asian nation of Kazakhstan, has had full diplomatic relations with Israel since 1992.
Kazakhstan’s president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, is expected to announce the move at a meeting with President Donald Trump later today, where they will also hold a joint phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump administration officials told Axios that the White House wants to “build momentum” for the Abraham Accords ahead of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington on Nov. 18.
As far as Kazakhstan’s motivation, the former Soviet nation has long lobbied Washington to cancel a Cold War-era law that has hindered its access to American markets, and could benefit from currying favor with the Trump administration.
Leading Jewish organizations have worked with Kazakhstan’s Jewish community and government for over a decade to lobby Congress to repeal the Jackson-Vanik Amendment, and told Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov and Danielle Cohen-Kanik that they are highly supportive of the country’s inclusion in the Accords…
Ahead of Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s own visit to the White House on Monday, the U.N. Security Council voted in favor of a U.S.-sponsored resolution to lift sanctions on the former Al-Qaida leader turned president…
Also getting an Oval Office welcome, Israeli media reported today that Trump invited the 20 Israeli hostages released from Gaza last month to visit the White House in two weeks…
On the Hill, members of the Senate Armed Services Committee from both parties voiced concerns with Elbridge Colby, under secretary of defense for policy, and his office at the Pentagon at a committee hearing today — for the second time this week, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
“Many of this committee have serious concerns about the Pentagon’s policy office and how it is serving the president of the United States and the Congress,” Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the chairman of the committee, said in his opening statement. “In many of these conversations, we hear that the Pentagon policy office seems to be doing what it pleases without coordinating, even inside the U.S. executive branch”…
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) announced this morning that she will retire at the end of her term in 2027, after serving 39 years in Congress where she made history as the first female speaker of the House.
For most of her illustrious career, Pelosi has been a reliable ally of Israel and, as Democratic leader, generally managed to keep her caucus united around support for the Jewish state. But, like many Democrats, she leaned in a more critical direction during the war in Gaza, at one point supporting a call to suspend weapons transfers to Israel. Read JI’s interview with Scott Wiener, the state senator from California seeking to win her seat…
The IDF is beginning to demobilize thousands of reservists called up for duty, some of whom have served hundreds of days in the past two years, announcing that the country is transitioning from war into a period of “enhanced border security” as the ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza largely endures…
The Treasury Department announced sanctions today against members of Hezbollah’s “finance team” who “oversee the movement of funds from Iran” in an effort to support the Lebanese government’s moves to disarm the terror group. The department revealed that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps has already transferred over $1 billion to Hezbollah this year…
Author Jamie Kirchick argues in The Washington Post that the “inevitable fracturing of President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement is in sight, the instigator of its rupture that most narcissistic and destructive of media personalities: Tucker Carlson.”
Kirchick admonishes Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts for failing to outright condemn Carlson’s platforming of neo-Nazi influencer Nick Fuentes: “Stalinists and Holocaust deniers like Fuentes are perfectly entitled to spew their nonsense on street corners, through self-published manifestos or in online livestreams. What they are not entitled to is the imprimatur of purportedly respectable institutions whose reputations hinge upon the voices they choose to amplify”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for an interview with former Minnesota Sen. Rudy Boschwitz, who will be celebrating his 95th birthday.
On Sunday, the Zionist Organization of America will hold its annual gala, where it will present awards to Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY); Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter; Leo Terrell, head of the Department of Justice’s antisemitism task force; Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Danny Danon; and philanthropists Irit and Jonathan Tratt.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
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COMMUNITY CONCERNS
What New York City Jewish leaders are most worried about in a Mamdani mayoralty
JI asked senior New York Democratic officials and Jewish community leaders to discuss the top threats that a Mamdani administration could pose to Jewish life in the city
If Mamdani’s win signaled that a far-left candidate could prevail in a deep-blue city, the underperformance of two other far-left challengers on big-city ballots underscores the limited appetite even deep-blue constituencies have for radical politics
Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey speaks at an Election Night party on November 4, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
In addition to New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s race, we’ve been spotlighting two other mayoral contests where socialist, anti-Israel candidates were running competitively against more traditionally liberal standard-bearers: in Minneapolis and Seattle.
If Mamdani’s bare 50% majority in the three-way race signaled that a far-left candidate could prevail in a deep-blue city — even while dividing the Democratic Party — the underperformance of the two other far-left challengers on big-city ballots underscores the limited appetite even deep-blue constituencies have for radical politics.
In Minneapolis, Mayor Jacob Frey won reelection to a third term over Democratic Socialists of America-affiliated state Sen. Omar Fateh. The race was close: While Frey held a substantial 10-point lead in the first round of balloting, he narrowly secured a victory by six points (50-44%) in the second round of the city’s ranked-choice election system.
Fateh formed an alliance with two other left-wing candidates in the race, but ultimately enough people who didn’t back Frey in the first round chose him as a second or third preference.
Fateh, a progressive affiliated with the DSA, has accused Israel of committing genocide, among other anti-Israel views, and campaigned with Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), who remains one of Israel’s harshest critics in Congress.
Members of Fateh’s staff had also expressed hostile views towards Israel; his communications manager, Ayana Smith-Kooiman, said in a series of now-deleted social media posts that Israel “does not have a ‘right’ to exist” and “must be dismantled,” and said she did not care about Hamas a month after the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks — statements that drew rebuke from Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN).
The outcome is also looking favorable for the more-moderate incumbent in Seattle — though far from certain. Mayor Bruce Harrell, who trailed his socialist challenger Katie Wilson during the summer primary, is now leading her in the general election by eight points, 54-46%, with more than three-quarters of votes tallied.
Wilson, who has expressed hostile views towards Israel, including calling the Jewish state’s war on Hamas a “genocide,” led over Harrell in the primary. Wilson has expressed support in the past for divesting from investments in Seattle that support Israeli actions, which is in line with the BDS movement.
Additionally, some Seattle Jewish community leaders have expressed deep concern over Wilson’s candidacy and her relationships with anti-Israel activists, including Kshama Sawant, a former far-left Seattle city councilmember who has faced accusations of stoking antisemitism.
However, the race is still far from being decided. Many ballots are left to be counted, including a significant share from left-leaning parts of the city.
If both of the other socialist, anti-Israel candidates go down to defeat, combined with Mamdani’s bare 50% majority in heavily-Democratic New York City, it’s pretty clear that as an electoral strategy, left-wing activism and anti-Israel politicking is still a losing formula.
On the other hand, the fact that the far-left candidates were able to win between 45-50% of the citywide vote — with one win, one loss and one race still too close to call — it’s a sign that this brand of radical politics isn’t going away.
JI asked senior New York Democratic officials and Jewish community leaders to discuss the top threats that a Mamdani administration could pose to Jewish life in the city
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images
New York City Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani celebrates during an election night event at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater in Brooklyn, New York on November 4, 2025.
New Yorkers elected democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday as the next New York City mayor, ensuring the city will be headed in a leftward ideological direction for the next four years. Mamdani’s election has also sparked widespread concerns in the city’s Jewish community about how the incoming mayor, who refused to condemn “globalize the intifada” rhetoric or acknowledge the state of Israel as a Jewish homeland, would impact the day-to-day life of Jewish New Yorkers.
Jewish Insider asked senior New York Democratic officials and Jewish community leaders — granted anonymity to offer their candid thoughts — to discuss the top threats that a Mamdani administration could pose to Jewish life in the city.
Respondents expressed worry that Mamdani’s anti-Israel worldview could lead to heightened antisemitism, bring a vanguard of leftist operatives hostile to Jewish concerns into City Hall, impact the effectiveness of the New York Police Department and fray ties between the city and Israeli institutions or businesses. He has even vowed to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits, though experts have voiced doubt on the legality of the move.
These are five of the leading concerns from the Jewish communal leadership in New York City, home to the largest Jewish community in the country, about what Mamdani might do as mayor:
1. Mamdani has expressed a desire to defund, or even disband, the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group — the unit that responds to major protests, such as the anti-Israel encampment on Columbia University’s campus last year:
“He’s been pushing for years to disband the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group,” a source with knowledge of city government told JI. In December 2024, Mamdani tweeted, “As mayor, I will disband the SRG, which has cost taxpayers millions in lawsuit settlements and brutalized countless New Yorkers exercising their first amendment rights.”
The SRG responds to hostage situations, riots and protests, including the deadly Park Avenue office building shooting that occurred in July. In April 2024, the Strategic Response Group was called in to assist with clearing the anti-Israel encampment that overtook Columbia University, which saw several incidents of physical assault against Jewish students.
“One question is if he’s actually successful in disbanding them,” the source continued. “That will depend on his will and bureaucracy and whether he can put together an administration to accomplish his tasks. If he’s going to be an effective mayor, then yes he could do it. And if he is, then you’re going to see completely different responses in the city.
“Something super important is whether a Mamdani administration would actually have a proactive approach to policing and using security in a way that will make sure Jewish New Yorkers are safe. If it’s not a priority for them, then I’m afraid to see what will happen.”
2. Mamdani could further politicize NYC Public Schools at a time when anti-Israel rhetoric and related antisemitic incidents have surged dramatically in K-12 schools:
In the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, New York City Public Schools launched new curriculum materials on antisemitism and Islamophobia in its schools. As mayor, Mamdani will have power to appoint a new chancellor of public schools, who could rewrite that curriculum.
Former Rep. Jamaal Bowman, previously a far-left congressman who lost reelection in part because of his radical views towards Israel, has been discussed as a potential candidate to lead the country’s largest public school system. Bowman embraced a number of hostile positions toward Israel in the aftermath of Oct. 7 and throughout his reelection campaign, including pledging to oppose funding for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system and endorsing the BDS movement.
The New York City Public School system has seen a surge of anti-Israel activity since Oct. 7. In November 2023, a Queens high school teacher said she was forced to hide in a locked office as a mob of students tried to push their way into her classroom, after learning she attended a pro-Israel rally.
In May, a “Teacher Career Pathways” newsletter for educators in the city’s 1,800 schools called for students to be heard on the “genocide in Gaza.” NYC Schools Chancellor Melissa Aviles-Ramos apologized for the mass communication, stating that it should not have been released without consultation from the mayor’s office.
A political insider told JI there is anxiety the new administration will fuel anti-Israel discourse in the classroom. “There’s concern about what curriculums will be used to teach about the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict,” he said. “What vendors will be used?”
The American Jewish Committee announced plans on Wednesday to “boost the ‘Hidden Voices’ curriculum in New York City public schools, which provides resources, lesson plans and workshops to highlight the histories and contributions of underrepresented groups in U.S. history.”
3. Mamdani has expressed support for the BDS movement, which could have a wide-ranging impact on Israeli partnerships with New York City companies or institutions.
Mamdani said in June that he would attempt to divest from Israel if elected mayor — including discontinuing the NYC-Israel Economic Council, which Mayor Eric Adams recently launched.
“His pursuit of discriminatory policies that boycott and divest from Israel, companies doing business in Israel, and U.S.-Israel tech partnerships could cost New York taxpayers billions over the next ten years,” said the head of a leading Jewish organization. “He knows [BDS] policy is discriminatory and antisemitic, yet he refuses to abandon it. Even worse, he continues to double down and has made it an important piece of his economic strategy.”
Mamdani has also said he would “reassess” the partnership between Cornell University and Israel’s Technion, potentially displacing it from its campus on Roosevelt Island. “Ending [the Cornell-Technion] partnership would deal a blow to the city’s booming tech sector, chase away innovators, destroy vital educational opportunities, and damage New York’s reputation as a global business hub,” Ted Deutch, CEO of the AJC, said in a statement.
A political insider and Jewish communal leader told JI those are policies Mamdani could enforce, but “he would have to go out of his way to.”
“He said he’ll divest from Israel but it would be unprecedented for him to start organizing the pension boards under the comptroller,” the source said. “It doesn’t mean he won’t do it, but it’s more complicated than the stroke of a pen. No one knows if he will be passive, aggressive or proactive; there are many options of what we could do.”
4. Mamdani’s inability to condemn antisemitism from his public perch, while associating himself with extremist individuals could lead to a rise in antisemitism:
During the campaign, Mamdani affiliated with anti-Israel activist Linda Sarsour, considered to be one of the mayor-elect’s mentors and Imam Siraj Wahhaj, who Mamdani called one of the “foremost Muslim leaders” in the U.S. Wahhaj has a history of supporting controversial figures involved in terrorism, including testifying as a character witness at the trial of Omar Abdel-Rahman who was found guilty of seditious conspiracy for his role in plotting the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Jeremy Corbyn, who led Britain’s Labour Party and was suspended over antisemitic comments, also phone-banked for Mamdani in the closing days of the campaign.
Mamdani has said he would oppose using the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, which would dismantle an executive order signed by Adams in June as part of a push against rising antisemitism.
“Even if Mamdani doesn’t do anything to actually impact the day-to-day of the Jewish community, the symbolic impact of Mamdani’s victory [is] devastating,” another veteran Jewish communal leader said. “It shows that a person espousing views that most of us consider dangerous and antisemitic can get elected. It’s the breaking of a taboo.”
5. Mamdani’s failure to equate anti-Zionism with antisemitism could weaken enforcement of laws protecting Jewish institutions:
Throughout his campaign, Mamdani repeatedly said he does not support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state and that his criticism of Israel does not amount to antisemitism. But the majority of Jewish Americans report that Israel is a large part of their Jewish identity.
Antisemitism watchers have noted that anti-Israel demonstrations — especially those on college campuses — have increasingly turned blatantly antisemitic by targeting Jewish, not Israeli, institutions such as Hillels and Chabad houses.
The communal leader and political insider added that it’s uncertain where Mamdani draws a line at anti-Israel activity crossing into antisemitism, and therefore whether he would protect Jewish institutions. For example, they said, “it’s unclear if he would use protesting a university Hillel with ‘Free Palestine’ as antisemitic or anti-Zionist.”
Plus, the end of a Golden era in Maine
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Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey speaks to supporters at an Election Night party on November 2, 2021 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Good Wednesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Jewish Americans are still taking stock after Zohran Mamdani’s victory last night in the New York City mayoral race. The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, based in New York, called Mamdani’s victory a “grim milestone” and a reminder “that antisemitism remains a clear and present danger, even in the places where American Jews have long felt most secure.” Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, listed policies the organization will be looking toward “to address the profound concerns about what the future holds for Jewish safety and belonging.”
Robert Tucker, the Jewish commissioner of the New York City Fire Department, resigned this morning, The New York Post reports, hours before he was set to fly to Israel to meet his counterpart there.
In his first response to an incident of antisemitism as mayor-elect, Mamdani denounced the vandalism of the Magen David Yeshiva in Brooklyn, which had two swastikas graffitied on it overnight, as “a disgusting and heartbreaking act of antisemitism, and it has no place in our beautiful city”…
Another heavily Democratic city rejected its own far-left candidate for mayor today, as incumbent Mayor Jacob Frey of Minneapolis won reelection against his DSA-aligned challenger, state Sen. Omar Fateh, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports. Marking a win for the more pragmatic wing of the Democratic Party, Frey secured his third term with 50% of the vote, to Fateh’s 44%, in the second round of the city’s ranked-choice voting.
A similar result may be emerging in Seattle, where preliminary results last night showed the Democratic incumbent, Mayor Bruce Harrell, leading over his socialist challenger, Katie Wilson, though many ballots remain to be counted…
One day after a historic Election Day — first democratic socialist mayor of New York City, largest turnout in an NYC mayoral race since 1969, first female governor of Virginia, first Muslim woman elected to statewide office as Virginia’s lieutenant governor, a record percentage of registered voters turning out for the municipal election in Minneapolis, among others — and the U.S. is already hitting another milestone: the longest government shutdown in history, at 36 days long.
President Donald Trump partially blamed the shutdown for Democrats’ strong showing in yesterday’s elections at a breakfast with Senate Republicans this morning, telling them, “I thought we’d have a discussion after the press leaves about what last night represented, and what we should do about it. … I think if you read the pollsters, the shutdown was a big factor, negative for the Republicans”…
Citing the shutdown, increased polarization and rising political violence, Rep. Jared Golden (D-ME) announced this afternoon that he will not be seeking reelection. Golden, a pro-Israel centrist who often worked across the aisle, has represented Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, a largely rural, working-class district that Trump won in the 2024 election by 14 points, since 2018, a seat that will be difficult for Democrats to maintain…
Recently freed former hostage Elizabeth Tsurkov recounted her two and a half years of captivity by Kataib Hezbollah, the Iran-backed terror group in Iraq, in a new interview with The New York Times, detailing the torture she experienced that resulted in potentially permanent nerve damage and the need for “long-term physical and psychological rehabilitation,” as determined by doctors at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center…
The University of Maryland, College Park student government is scheduled to vote on two resolutions hostile towards Israel tonight, JI’s Haley Cohen reports. One calls for the university to prohibit people who are “committing war crimes” and “genocide” from speaking on campus, after the campus chapter of Students Supporting Israel hosted an event last month where former IDF soldiers spoke about their experiences serving during Israel’s war with Hamas.
The second resolution calls on the university to issue an apology to students who faced disciplinary action for protesting that event, when demonstrators packed the outside hallway shouting “baby killers” and “IOF [Israel “Occupation” Forces] off our campus,” while several others protested outside of the building with chants comparing the IDF to the Ku Klux Klan…
Variety profiles David Ellison in his first 100 days as CEO of the recently merged Paramount Skydance, including the media company’s about-face on Israel issues. Free Press founder Bari Weiss, hired as editor-in-chief of CBS News by Ellison, “has been so vocal in her support of [Israel] that she faces frequent death threats. She and her wife, The Free Press co-founder Nellie Bowles, require a detail of five bodyguards that costs the studio $10,000-$15,000 a day.”
Paramount also reportedly “maintains a list of talent it will not work with because they are deemed to be ‘overtly antisemitic’ as well as ‘xenophobic’ and ‘homophobic,’” after the studio was the first to denounce a boycott of Israel signed by several Hollywood heavyweights…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for the latest news on the Heritage Foundation’s internal reckoning with its defense of Tucker Carlson.
Tomorrow, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery (HEAR) Act, a bill aimed at eliminating loopholes used to possess Nazi-looted artwork that Jewish families have been trying to recover.
The Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a nomination hearing for Alex Velez-Green to be deputy under secretary of defense for policy, coming days after committee lawmakers blasted the Pentagon office and its head, Elbridge Colby, during a contentious hearing for failing to communicate with them.
Maccabi Tel Aviv will play Aston Villa tomorrow in a Europa League match that generated controversy after local authorities announced that supporters of the Israeli team would not be permitted to attend, with the game deemed “high risk” over security concerns. Over 700 police officers are expected to be deployed and a no-fly zone will be established around the Villa Park stadium in Birmingham, England.
Israel’s Hapoel Tel Aviv basketball team will face off against the Dubai team in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Round 9 of the EuroCup tomorrow.
The Blue Square Alliance Against Hate, formerly the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, will host its second Sports Leaders Convening at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts tomorrow, featuring Robert Kraft, the organization’s CEO and owner of the New England Patriots; Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee; Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League; Adam Lehman, CEO of Hillel International; Michael Masters, CEO of the Secure Community Network; and leaders from major sports leagues.
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy will host a webinar tomorrow on the possibility of peace between Israel and Lebanon with Lebanese Member of Parliament Fouad Makhzoumi.
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Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA), accompanied by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), speaks during a news conference in Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol Building on October 3, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Election Day is underway, and voters are breaking turnout records in New York City. Already by noon today, more people had voted in the mayoral race than had voted in the entirety of the 2021 NYC mayor’s race. By 3 p.m., more than 1.4 million New Yorkers had voted in the race — more than in any NYC mayoral election since 2001, according to The New York Times — with several more hours before the polls close at 9 p.m.
President Donald Trump chimed in last night, urging New Yorkers to vote for former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. “Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice. You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job,” he wrote on social media. Trump added in another post, “Any Jewish person that votes for Zohran Mamdani, a proven and self professed JEW HATER, is a stupid person!!!”…
One party leader not weighing in: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who has officially made it through the mayoral race without issuing an endorsement. He had said throughout the election that he had held “conversations” with Mamdani but resisted calls to either endorse his party’s candidate or to denounce his anti-Israel views. At a press conference in the Capitol this afternoon, Schumer told reporters he himself had voted and “look[s] forward to working with the next mayor” but would not reveal who got his vote…
Leading right-wing figures continue to contend with the normalization of antisemitism within the GOP: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) joined the list of Republicans who have publicly admonished Tucker Carlson for platforming neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes on his podcast, saying today, “Some of the things [Fuentes has] said are just blatantly antisemitic, racist and anti-American. Anti-Christian, for that matter. I think we have to call out antisemitism wherever it is. Whether it’s Tucker or anybody else, I don’t think we should be giving a platform to that kind of speech. He has a First Amendment right, but we shouldn’t ever amplify it. That’s my view.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) also denounced antisemitism on the right in comments today, though without naming Carlson or Fuentes. “Well, there are lots of voices, obviously, out there, but I don’t think there ought to be any — there just should be no room at all whatsoever for antisemitism or other forms of discrimination. That’s certainly not what our party is about,” Thune said…
Backlash against the Heritage Foundation for defending Carlson also continues; the National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, a conservative coalition aligned with Heritage, changed its tune today in an email to President Kevin Roberts, a day after the task force said it would stand by the organization.
In today’s email, obtained by Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch, the NTFCA co-chairs made several demands of Roberts, including removing his controversial video defending Carlson; an apology “to those Christians and Jews who are steadfast members of the conservative movement and believe that Israel has a special role to play both biblically and politically;” a conference hosted by Heritage on the boundaries of the conservative movement; hiring a visiting fellow “who shares mainstream conservative views on Israel, Jews and Christian Zionists” to win over Gen Zers; and to host Shabbat dinners with Heritage’s interns and junior staff members to educate them about Judaism.
The task force co-chairs said in the email that if an agreement is not reached soon, their relationship with Heritage “will be irrevocably harmed.” Co-chair Luke Moon told JI, “If the terms aren’t met, we will take the NTFCA elsewhere”…
Several Jewish organizations have cut ties with the NTFCA already over the incident, including the Zionist Organization of America and Young Jewish Conservatives; today, the Coalition for Jewish Values and Combat Antisemitism Movement did so as well.
“We cannot grant legitimacy to an effort to combat antisemitism operated by the Heritage Foundation while Heritage is validating antisemitism and giving it a platform,” CJV wrote. “Although our target” on the task force “was and remains primarily a left-wing cause, ‘no enemies on the right’ was always liable to be proven false.”
CAM, in its resignation letter to Roberts, affirmed its support of free speech and specified that “the genesis of this letter is our deep concern with how you, Mr. Roberts, on behalf of the Heritage Foundation, have chosen to exercise your rights” [emphasis original]…
Bipartisan lawmakers expressed frustration with the Pentagon for not properly briefing them on national security issues at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today, after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a new rule last month requiring all Pentagon staffers to get approval before interacting with members of Congress.
Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) called out Elbridge Colby, under secretary of defense for policy, specifically, saying it was even harder to contact him than Hegseth or Trump. “Man, I can’t even get a response, and we’re on your team,” Sullivan said…
The Trump administration is pushing Congress to repeal the Caesar Act sanctions on Syria ahead of Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s first visit to the White House on Monday, urging lawmakers to include it in the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. The Senate already approved the repeal in its version of the NDAA last month, but the House version does not include a similar provision…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for an interview with Republican Kentucky Senate candidate Nate Morris, who is seeking to take the seat of retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), and for a reflection on the late Vice President Dick Cheney’s legacy.
Tomorrow afternoon, the ADL will host a post-election briefing on the New York City mayoral race with its CEO, Jonathan Greenblatt, and Hindy Poupko, senior vice president of community strategy and external relations at UJA-Federation of New York.
Former Israeli hostage Emily Damari will appear at Temple Emanu-El in New York City tomorrow evening for her first public speaking engagement in the U.S., joined by author Noa Tishby.
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X is the only mainstream social media platform where Fuentes is allowed to have an account; he was unblocked in May 2024 and now has over 1 million followers
At a time when both parties are facing rising antisemitism in their own midst, we will be keeping a close eye on the results for trends affecting the Jewish community
Taurat Hossain/Anadolu via Getty Images
Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani campaigns on the eve of the Mayoral Election in Long Island City, New York, United States on November 3, 2025.
The stakes for Jewish voters are high for today’s off-year elections. All the major contests — in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia and California — are taking place in parts of the country where Jews make up a significant constituency. At a time when both parties are facing rising antisemitism in their own midst, we will be keeping a close eye on the results for trends affecting the Jewish community.
Here’s what we’ll be watching most closely:
New York City mayor: Polls consistently show Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani with a comfortable lead, but there’s less consensus on how decisive his winning margin will be. Most polls show Mamdani under 50%, though a few show him hitting a majority. Some show the combined anti-Mamdani vote — represented by former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa — outpacing Mamdani’s share.
Whether Mamdani surpasses a 50% majority will go a long way in determining how big his mandate will be. A narrower victory would mean that downballot Democrats — from members of Congress to local city council members — would have less to fear in response to the Mamdani movement.
President Donald Trump’s last-minute endorsement of Cuomo on Monday night could help the former Democratic governor pick off some Republican voters that had been leaning toward Sliwa. But for Cuomo to score an upset victory, he’d need to win over the vast majority of those Sliwa voters.
Pay close attention to the results in Rep. Jerry Nadler’s (D-NY) heavily Jewish Manhattan district for signs of where the progressive-minded Jewish vote ends up landing. Cuomo won the first round of balloting over Mamdani in the district (37-33%), which includes the Upper East and Upper West Sides, but Mamdani narrowly prevailed in the final round of ranked-choice voting. Nadler notably backed Mamdani after his victory in the primary, but his district featured a significant share of backers for Brad Lander, the progressive city comptroller, as well. Cuomo will need a solid showing in Nadler’s district to do well.
New Jersey governor: The race between Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) and Republican Jack Ciattarelli is competitive, though Democrats hold a small edge, according to public polls. The county we’ll be watching closely as a bellwether is Bergen County in north Jersey, which has one of the largest Jewish constituencies in the state and saw a significant pro-Trump swing from 2020 to 2024.
It’s also home to Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), the pro-Israel stalwart in Congress who carried the county in the Democratic gubernatorial primary and campaigned with Sherrill at a Jewish event in his home base last month.
Former President Joe Biden won 57% of the vote in Bergen, while former Vice President Kamala Harris barely won a majority (51%). New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, won 53% of the Bergen County vote in his narrow victory over Ciattarelli in 2021. Ciattarelli would probably need an outright win in suburban Bergen to secure a victory.
Virginia statewide elections: Former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, the Democratic nominee, is expected to win comfortably against Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, the lieutenant governor, but the downballot races are likely to be more competitive.
Republicans are pinning their hopes on securing a second term for Attorney General Jason Miyares, one of the more active state attorneys general working to fight antisemitism in their home state. His Democratic opponent, Jay Jones, is mired in a scandal over texts wishing violence against a former GOP colleague in the state Legislature. Polling shows the race highly competitive, with Spanberger’s margin of victory potentially making the difference as to whether she can pull Jones over the finish line.
The lieutenant governor race features Ghazala Hashmi, a Democratic state senator who has elicited concern from the state’s Jewish community over her past involvement in anti-Israel activism. She’s running against conservative talk show host John Reid. Either winner would make statewide history: Hashmi would be the first Muslim woman elected to statewide office; Reid would be the first openly gay Republican elected statewide.
In a brief interview Monday, Jewish Insider asked Hashmi how big of a challenge she thinks antisemitism is in Virginia. Hashmi replied: “I think we see growing challenges on so many levels of bigotry, and we have to be united in our efforts. I’m facing a great deal of Islamophobic attacks, as you probably have seen, so we have to respond to everything.” Pressed on what she thought about antisemitism specifically, Hashmi cut our interview short.
California redistricting referendum: Gov. Gavin Newsom is likely to win his push to redraw California’s congressional lines to offset some of the partisan redistricting that Republicans have engaged in. The new lines, however, could end up endangering some of the more moderate Republicans that have strong records on fighting antisemitism and supporting Israel.
The list of those Republicans adversely affected include: Rep. Ken Calvert — who chairs the Appropriations subcommittee on defense funding — as well as Reps. Darrell Issa, Kevin Kiley, Doug LaMalfa and David Valadao.
Kiley has been a particularly outspoken voice against campus antisemitism from his perch on the House Education and Workforce Committee.
Far-left mayoral scorecard: We’ll also be closely watching the mayoral races in Seattle and Minneapolis, where far-left DSA-aligned candidates are running competitively. If Katie Wilson and Omar Fateh end up both prevailing in Seattle and Minneapolis, respectively, it will signal a sign of the Democratic Party’s growing radicalism in major urban areas.
The NYC mayoral front-runner has said that, if elected mayor, he may displace the campus, a joint project of Cornell University and Israel’s Technion, from Roosevelt Island
Roy Rochlin/Getty Images
A view of Tata Innovation Center at the Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island on July 23, 2022 in New York City. Cornell Tech is joint academic venture between Cornell and the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology.
If elected mayor, Zohran Mamdani has said he would reassess the partnership between Cornell University and Israel’s Technion, potentially kicking the joint Cornell Tech campus out of its home on Roosevelt Island in New York City.
But two Jewish Mamdani backers who represent Roosevelt Island and have supported the project have been silent about his plans.
Cornell and Technion were selected by city officials under Mayor Mike Bloomberg in 2010 to build the campus on city-owned land and received $100 million in other incentives. It opened in 2017.
Mamdani’s campaign told The New York Times and Ynet that he would reassess the partnership if elected. As mayor, Mamdani would have the authority to appoint new members to Roosevelt Island’s governing board, giving him influence over management of the island.
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) and state Sen. Liz Krueger, both of whom have been supporters of Mamdani, as well as active backers of the Cornell Tech campus, did not respond to requests for comment. Both have appointees on the community task force that supported the construction of the campus, which is within their districts.
Mamdani called for a boycott of the campus shortly after being elected to the state Senate in 2020, and said that “Technion University is an Israeli University that has helped to develop a lot of weapons technology used by the IDF” and that the campus should be assessed through “the lens of BDS” — the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign targeting Israel — according to the New York Post.
Mamdani’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment on his stance or plans for the campus.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro, now a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council, said Mamdani’s plans were “terrible.”
“It smacks of an academic boycott of a respected Israeli university,” Shapiro said. “It also is a great way to drive innovation jobs out of the city. Both wrong in principle and self-defeating in practice.”
Mamdani is also expected to attempt to block further investment in Israel bonds in the city’s pension fund and has said he would shut down the New York City-Israel Economic Council launched by Mayor Eric Adams.
Plus, Virginia LG candidate skirts antisemitism questions
Joshua Sukoff/Medill News Service
President Donald Trump holds a joint news conference at the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on February 4, 2025. This is Trump’s first joint news conference with a foreign leader in his second term.
Good Monday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
It’s Election Day across the country tomorrow, and we’ll be watching several key races.
Front of mind is the New York City mayoral race where Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani is expected to prevail, though it remains to be seen if he’ll claim an absolute majority.
All candidates are still vying for the Jewish vote: Over the weekend, divisions emerged in the anti-Zionist Satmar Hasidic community after one of its political leaders issued an endorsement of Mamdani — some leaders publicly broke ranks to reject the move and instead endorse his rival, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Meanwhile, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa visited the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s Ohel in Queens (and recalled a blessing he received from Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson decades ago which Sliwa claimed “saved my life”)…
In nearby New Jersey, gubernatorial candidates Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) and Jack Ciattarelli are doing the same. We’ve covered Sherrill’s recent outreach efforts to the state’s sizable Jewish community; on the GOP side, President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday urging “ALL of my supporters in the Orthodox community in Lakewood [N.J.] and its surrounding towns to vote in HUGE numbers for Jack Ciattarelli,” naming in particular “all the Yeshiva students who turned out to vote for me last year.” Trump won around 88% of the heavily Jewish township’s vote in the 2024 presidential election…
And in Virginia, former Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) is likely to win the governor’s mansion against the state’s current lieutenant governor, Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, in a race set to make Old Dominion history — either way, the state will elect its first female governor.
Also on the Virginia ballot: Ghazala Hashmi, the Democratic state senator running for lieutenant governor, who has elicited concern from the state’s Jewish community over her past involvement in anti-Israel activism and her record on combating antisemitism.
In a brief interview today, Jewish Insider’s Editor-in-Chief Josh Kraushaar asked Hashmi how big of a challenge she thinks antisemitism is in Virginia. Hashmi replied: “I think we see growing challenges on so many levels of bigotry, and we have to be united in our efforts. I’m facing a great deal of Islamophobic attacks, as you probably have seen, so we have to respond to everything.” Pressed on what she thought about antisemitism specifically, Hashmi cut the interview short…
The fallout from the Heritage Foundation’s embrace of Tucker Carlson and refusal to disavow Nick Fuentes continues, as right-wing figures publicly declare themselves aligned with or opposed to the move. Orthodox conservative influencer Ben Shapiro said about Carlson, Fuentes and their ilk in a lengthy video statement today: “These people aren’t to my right. They’re not attached in any way to the fundamental principles of conservatism. And these people have already declared themselves my enemies. I’d be a fool not to take them seriously.”
Ryan Neuhaus, who served as Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts’ chief of staff until Friday, resigned after reposting numerous social media posts in defense of Roberts, including one saying that Heritage employees opposed to his statement were “virtue signaling” and calling for them to resign…
A new poll released today by the Democratic Majority for Israel finds that Democrats overwhelmingly support the ceasefire deal reached between Israel and Hamas and a majority of them think Trump played at least a “somewhat important role” in reaching the agreement, JI’s Danielle Cohen-Kanik reports.
A majority of those polled (56%) said they believe that the U.S. should keep its alliance with Israel, though only 32% felt so “strongly.” Three-quarters (75%) said they support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish homeland, with 12% saying they don’t believe Israel has a right to exist…
The Wall Street Journal documents the rise and sustained popularity of Abdulmalik Al-Houthi, the reclusive commander of the Houthis in Yemen, who has continued to resist pressure by officials from Arab states to cease the terror group’s attacks on Israel and ships in the Red Sea, “and go back to being a relatively small-time player in the region’s conflicts.”
“‘They genuinely believe in this jihad to remove Israel from that land,’ said April Longley Alley, a former United Nations diplomat who has engaged with the Houthi leadership. ‘And they’re going to keep pushing’”…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the dispatch of a humanitarian and medical aid delegation from Israel to Jamaica today, to assist in relief efforts after Hurricane Melissa tore through the country earlier this week…
Sudanese refugees in Israel told The Times of Israel about the compounded pain and fear they experienced as the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks and the civil war in Sudan unfolded in parallel, decrying the lack of media coverage of Sudan while the world focused on Gaza…
Yad Vashem announced today that the museum has identified the names of 5 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, and hopes to use artificial intelligence to name at least 250,000 more…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for the backstory surrounding Massachusetts Senate candidate Rep. Seth Moulton’s (D-MA) attacks against AIPAC.
Tomorrow, the World Zionist Organization and Temple Emanu-El are holding a memorial event in New York City for slain Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin on the 30th anniversary of his assassination. Speakers will include Rabin’s grandson, Jonathan Benartzi; Yehuda Kurtzer, president of the Shalom Hartman Institute; former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro; Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs; and Israeli American peace advocate Alana Zeitchik.
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Overhauled Kennedy Center takes on the mantle of combating antisemitism
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Plus, Palantir CTO's Israeli inspiration
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Tucker Carlson speaks during the memorial service for political activist Charlie Kirk at State Farm Stadium on September 21, 2025 in Glendale, Arizona.
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Efforts are underway to establish an International Stabilization Force in Gaza, Axios scooped today, with U.S. Central Command taking the lead on drafting the plan and holding discussions with countries, including Indonesia, Azerbaijan, Egypt and Turkey, to potentially contribute troops.
Though Israeli officials have said they oppose Turkey’s involvement in Gaza, the U.S. still views Ankara as most capable of getting Hamas “to agree and behave,” one U.S. official told the outlet.
Israel’s main concern is the new force’s legitimacy with Gazans and its willingness to engage militarily with Hamas, a senior Israeli official said. The plan would also see the creation of a new Palestinian police force, with training and vetting by the U.S., Egypt and Jordan…
Kevin Roberts, president of the influential Heritage Foundation, released a video today affirming the organization’s support of anti-Israel commentator Tucker Carlson, defending the podcaster from the “pressure” of the “globalist class,” after reports arose that Heritage had scrubbed references to Carlson from one of its donation pages.
“When it serves the interests of the United States to cooperate with Israel and other allies, we should do so … But when it doesn’t, conservatives should feel no obligation to reflexively support any foreign government, no matter how loud the pressure becomes from the globalist class or from their mouthpieces in Washington,” Roberts said.
His comments come days after Carlson hosted neo-Nazi influencer Nick Fuentes on his podcast, whom Roberts said he was unwilling to “cancel.”
“We will always defend our friends against the slander of bad actors who serve someone else’s agenda. That includes Tucker Carlson, who remains — and as I have said before — always will be a close friend of the Heritage Foundation,” Roberts continued…
In the run-up to the New York City mayoral election, The Bulwark co-founder Bill Kristol — a longtime conservative commentator and founder of The Weekly Standard — said that he would vote for Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani if he were a resident of the city.
“You know, New York City gets to have a left-wing mayor. It’s not the first time, and it’s different from the rest of the country. I wish they were a little less, you know, tolerant of certain things — on Israel, and so, against Israel and all that. But some of the economic stuff, I think, is just silly, but I don’t think it’s going to matter,” Kristol told The Forum. He called “the idea of going back to” former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo “ridiculous”…
Cuomo, meanwhile, picked up the endorsement of Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-NY), the former chair of the New York State Republican Party, who said he’s had “plenty of disagreements — very publicly over the years — and fought tooth and nail with Gov. Cuomo. But there’s no doubt in my mind he would be a far superior mayor than a communist,” referring to Mamdani.
When asked if it’s a mistake for Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa to stay in the race, Langworthy said, “Everyone’s really got to check, is this a vanity project? Or is this something you’re trying to do to seriously be the mayor? There’s only one candidate running against Mamdani that has a credible path to win. And there’s Andrew Cuomo”…
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) is preparing to enter the race for New York governor shortly after the mayoral election, Axios reports, with more than $13 million on hand. Stefanik’s team reportedly believes New Yorkers will turn on the Democratic Party if Mamdani is elected mayor, leaving Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul — who endorsed Mamdani — more vulnerable…
Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), the party front-runner for Senate in Michigan, is “underwhelming” the Democratic establishment, NOTUS reports, with strategists warning that her fundraising and campaign activity does not show her substantially pulling ahead of her opponents — state Sen. Mallory McMorrow and Abdul El-Sayed, the latter of whom is backed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), both running to her left — as expected…
Palantir’s chief technology officer, Shyam Sankar, appearing on The New York Times’ “Interesting Times” podcast released today, affirmed that Israel is a “morally appropriate partner” for the software giant to conduct business with, and said that he was motivated to join up as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves this year to lend his technological expertise because of his “observation in Israel after Oct. 7.”
“Israel is an incredibly technical country. Bountiful resources of technologists,” Sankar said. But when reservists were called up to join the IDF in its war in Gaza, “they were horrified at the state of technology, which is actually an implicit self-critique. … The IDF got more modernization done in the four months after Oct. 7 than in the 10 years that I’d worked with them prior”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for reporting on the Kennedy Center’s efforts to address antisemitism and fight cultural boycotts of Israel as its Trump-appointed director looks to make a mark on programming at the institution.
The Republican Jewish Coalition’s leadership summit kicks off tomorrow in Las Vegas, with featured speakers including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL), Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter and many more. JI’s Matthew Kassel will be in attendance — be sure to say hello!
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
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Zohran Mamdani is set to prevail thanks to a divided opposition and backing from an enthusiastic left-wing faction of the electorate — not because he’s winning over hearts and minds in Gotham
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani answers questions on October 17, 2025 in New York City.
A new Quinnipiac poll of the New York City mayoral race with less than a week until Election Day shows Zohran Mamdani on track to win, but with a narrow plurality that underscores the breadth and resilience of the political opposition against him. In short, he’s set to prevail thanks to a divided opposition and backing from an enthusiastic left-wing faction of the electorate — not because he’s winning over hearts and minds in Gotham.
If the polling is accurate, Mamdani would be the first New York City mayor to win without a majority of the vote since John Lindsay in 1969. Mamdani leads former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo 43-33% in the Quinnipiac poll, with Republican Curtis Sliwa tallying 14%. Mamdani, in a sign of his political ceiling, has lost several points of support since the pollster’s survey earlier this month.
Among Sliwa voters, 55% said that Cuomo was their second choice, while only 7% said the same of Mamdani. If New York City utilized a ranked-choice voting system as it did in the primary, this race would be neck-and-neck.
The Quinnipiac poll finds Mamdani building an unconventional coalition of secular progressives and Muslims in New York City politics, running up the score with voters of no religion (71% support) or of a religion other than Christianity and Judaism (50%). Mamdani struggles badly with Jewish voters, winning just 16% support, while only receiving 28% of the vote among Catholics and 36% among Protestants.
Mamdani is winning support from just 59% of Democrats, with 31% backing Cuomo — an unusually weak showing for a Democratic nominee. But Republicans are evenly divided between Cuomo and Sliwa, preventing the former governor from capitalizing on Mamdani’s deep unpopularity with GOP voters. Mamdani is tied with Cuomo among independents at 34% apiece.
There are some indications that the late wave of negative attacks Cuomo has aimed at Mamdani — invoking his embrace of a controversial imam, raising questions about his commitments to fighting Islamic extremism and his ties to antisemitic influencer Hasan Piker — have dented the front-runner’s favorability a bit. Mamdani’s +4 favorability rating in the Quinnipiac poll (45-41%) is a notch worse than his +8 favorability rating (45-37%) in Quinnipiac’s early October poll.
But Cuomo’s favorability remains decidedly worse, with a 54% majority viewing the former governor unfavorably and 34% viewing him favorably. Cuomo resigned from the governorship amid scandal and allegations of sexual misconduct.
The results suggest that an earlier and more aggressive attack against Mamdani from a better-organized anti-Mamdani coalition could have paid dividends. If the opposition hit Mamdani on his vulnerabilities on crime and safety — especially given his recent tone-deaf comments on the 9/11 terror attack — it could plausibly have laid out a more effective narrative that he’s too extreme to lead the nation’s biggest city.
But the last-minute nature of the Cuomo attacks feel more like the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass at the end of a football game.
The one silver lining for Cuomo: There’s only a week of early voting in New York City, and because of the exorbitant cost of airing on New York City television, the swarm of campaign ads doesn’t hit full force until the campaign’s final weeks. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, for the first time in the general election, donated $1.5 million to a pro-Cuomo super PAC, an indicator he sees the race getting closer.
That means that even though Mamdani remains the clear favorite, Cuomo still has a narrow path to a political comeback if he can convince enough Republican Sliwa voters to quietly cast a vote for him to stop the democratic socialist.
Plus, Suozzi re-ups Cuomo endorsement
Win McNamee/Getty Images
Hamtramck, Mich. Mayor Amer Ghalib introduces President Donald Trump, as Trump visits a campaign office on Oct. 18, 2024, in Hamtramck, Michigan.
Good Wednesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The White House has told Republicans that President Donald Trump will not pull the nomination of Amer Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Mich., to be U.S. ambassador to Kuwait and wants the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to hold a vote on his candidacy, despite the growing bipartisan opposition to his nomination, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
White House officials have communicated to committee Republicans in recent days that Trump would not withdraw Ghalib’s nomination because the president credits the Democratic Hamtramck mayor with helping him win the state of Michigan in the 2024 presidential election by turning out the state’s Arab American vote, two sources familiar with the ongoing discussions told JI.
“If Trump wants his friend to go down that way, that’s OK. He can go down that way,” one Republican on the committee said, expressing confidence that Ghalib had no path to advance out of committee…
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY), who represents a Long Island-based swing district on the outskirts of New York City, today endorsed former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the general election for New York City mayor. Suozzi had endorsed Cuomo in the Democratic primary and announced last month that he would not be endorsing Zohran Mamdani after he secured the party’s nomination.
In Suozzi’s decision to re-up his support for Cuomo, now running as an independent, less than a week out from the election, he distanced himself from Mamdani’s political leanings: “I’m a Democratic Capitalist, not a Democratic Socialist. I endorse Andrew Cuomo. I can not back a declared socialist with a thin resume to run the most complex city in America”…
Time magazine profiles New York City Mayor Eric Adams, where he recalls hosting Mamdani and his father, Mahmood Mamdani — a professor at Columbia University with a long record of anti-Israel commentary — for dinner in 2023. “The frightening thing is, he really believes this stuff! Globalize the intifada, there’s nothing wrong with that! He believes, you know, I don’t have anything against Jews, I just don’t like Israel. Well, who’s in Israel, bro?” Adams said…
Elsewhere in New York, the Democratic race to clinch the nomination for retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY)’s seat gained another candidate today: Cameron Kasky, a Jewish gun control activist who survived the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in 2018. Kasky, who recently started co-hosting the “For You Pod” with The Bulwark, frequently criticizes Israel and AIPAC in public statements, including accusing Israel of carrying out a genocide in Gaza and not being committed to the ongoing ceasefire with Hamas.
The field to succeed Nadler, a progressive Jewish lawmaker whose district has one of the largest Jewish constituencies in the country, has already drawn several candidates, including his former longtime aide, Micah Lasher…
Another candidate with harsh words for AIPAC is Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA), challenging Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) for his seat. Moulton, considered more moderate than Markey, continued to appeal to his left flank this week, appearing on a podcast hosted by Jack Cocchiarella, a self-described “progressive Gen Z political commentator” who frequently engages in harsh criticism of Israel on social media.
Moulton — who recently decided to return AIPAC’s donations and pledged not to take its support going forward — said his split with the group could continue to feature in the race depending “a lot on what happens in Gaza and Israel. … I certainly hope … we don’t resort to more violence, and if that’s the case, I think we’ll be able to talk about other issues in this campaign. Sadly, if it’s not, then I’m sure this will keep coming up.”
Moulton did not push back on Cocchiarella’s assertion that AIPAC, which he said has ties to the “Netanyahu regime,” should “be registered as a foreign lobby.” (Accusations from both political fringes that AIPAC — whose members are American citizens — constitutes a foreign influence operation have often invoked antisemitic dual loyalty tropes)…
The Anti-Defamation League today removed a section called “Protect Civil Rights” from its “What We Do” webpage, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports, shortly after it pulled down its “Glossary of Extremism and Hate” amid conservative attacks on the organization. The group appears to be pivoting after FBI Director Kash Patel recently cut the bureau’s ties with the ADL, calling it “an extreme group functioning like a terrorist organization”…
Spotted in Riyadh, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa spoke today at the Future Investment Initiative summit, with front-row spectators Donald Trump Jr. and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman…
Also in the region, U.S. envoy Morgan Ortagus visited Lebanon today to push the Lebanese government to speed up efforts to disarm Hezbollah, with a goal of total disarmament by the end of the year, The New York Times reports.
The Lebanese Armed Forces have seized 10,000 rockets and 400 missiles from the terror group as part of disarmament efforts already, though Israeli and American officials told the Times it’s not sufficient, with Hezbollah moving to rebuild its stockpile…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for an interview with California Democratic state Sen. Scott Weiner, running to replace former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who is rumored to be announcing her retirement plans shortly.
Tomorrow, the N7 Foundation and Polaris National Security Foundation are hosting the invite-only Washington Prosperity Summit, with attendees including Trump administration officials, bipartisan lawmakers, foreign dignitaries from the Middle East and business executives, “to explore policies to advance prosperity in the region.”
The Simon Wiesenthal Center is hosting its 2025 Humanitarian Award Dinner in Los Angeles tomorrow, honoring Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, CNN anchor Dana Bash, Oct. 7 survivor Aya Meydan and former Israeli hostage Omer Shem Tov. Director Steven Spielberg will present Zaslav with this year’s Humanitarian Award, the center’s highest honor.
In Washington, Sony Pictures Entertainment, the Motion Picture Association and the German Embassy will host a special screening of “Nuremberg,” a new feature film on the Nuremberg Trials.
Also tomorrow, the World Zionist Congress wraps up in Jerusalem and the Future Investment Initiative summit comes to a close in Riyadh.
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JUSTICE, JUSTICE HE PURSUES
New U.S. Attorney in Minnesota Daniel Rosen sees history of antisemitism repeating itself
In an interview with JI, the Minnesota prosecutor and Jewish community leader said he was motivated to seek the role because of the ‘rapid escalation of violent antisemitism’
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Jewish leaders, tech experts hopeful, but realistic about TikTok deal’s impact on online antisemitism
JFNA CEO Eric Fingerhut cited TikTok’s new owners’ ties to the Jewish community as an an encouraging sign
Plus, Mamdani invokes antisemitic tropes in newly revealed video
Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images
Smoke rises after Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, as seen from Israel near the border, on Oct. 7, 2025.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today ordered the IDF to “immediately carry out forceful strikes in the Gaza Strip” after Hamas terrorists opened fire on Israeli troops in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
Hamas, in response, said it is postponing the release of a hostage body meant to be turned over to Israel today. Yesterday, Hamas staged the recovery of hostage remains that it reburied before handing to the Red Cross, caught on film by the IDF, which turned out to be partial remains belonging to a hostage who was already recovered by the Israeli army in 2023. Netanyahu said the act “constitute[d] a clear violation of the [ceasefire] agreement.”
Israeli officials told Axios that Netanyahu initially sought approval for action against Hamas from President Donald Trump, who is currently traveling in Asia, before moving forward, but there’s “no indication” the two leaders spoke before Netanyahu’s announcement on today’s strikes…
A senior Israeli official told Israel Hayom that Saudi Arabia has scaled back its participation in ceasefire talks after far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich made a disparaging comment last week on Saudi-Israel normalization, if it were to require the establishment of a Palestinian state. The statement (“No thank you, keep riding camels in the desert”) prompted blowback and he apologized shortly after.
“It’s not only because of Smotrich, but his comments certainly pushed [the Saudis] in that direction,” the official told the outlet. “Israel is now dealing with a bloc that includes Turkey, Qatar and Egypt — countries interested in preserving Hamas’ role in Gaza to varying degrees and refusing to pressure it to disarm”…
The Wall Street Journal traveled to an IDF outpost on the “yellow line” demarcating where Israeli troops have pulled back in Gaza. Israel is working on building water and electricity infrastructure and new aid hubs in the area and believes the entire line, which sits on high ground by design, is defensible from Hamas, Israeli officials told the Journal…
With a week to go until Election Day in the New York City mayoral race, new video has surfaced of Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani invoking antisemitic rhetoric shortly before the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks.
Speaking at a Democratic Socialists of America convention in August 2023, Mamdani said, “For anyone to care about these issues, we have to make them hyper local. We have to make clear that when the boot of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been laced by the IDF.” The idea that police brutality in the United States is caused by law enforcement training or coordination with Israel is a modern antisemitic trope.
Mamdani continued, “We are in a country where those connections abound, especially in New York City. You have so many opportunities to make clear the ways in which that struggle over there [Israel], is tied to capitalist interests over here”…
Meanwhile, The New York Times reports on the super PACs backing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo for mayor, which have raised him more than $40 million over the course of the election — compared to $10 million raised by super PACs for Mamdani and $1 million for Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee.
“The donors to the pro-Cuomo super PACs have included Michael R. Bloomberg, the former mayor; William Lauder, the chair of the Estée Lauder Companies; Ronald Lauder, the president of the World Jewish Congress; Bill Ackman, the investor; Steve Wynn, the casino investor; Daniel Loeb, the hedge fund manager; Barry Diller, the chairman of IAC; and Joe Gebbia, the co-founder of Airbnb,” the Times reports.
Bloomberg, who spent at least $8 million attempting to defeat Mamdani in the Democratic primary, met with him last month after he clinched the party’s nomination. Bloomberg was careful to note it was not an endorsement meeting, but rather a discussion on policy and staffing if Mamdani is elected mayor…
On the Hill, the nomination of Amer Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, Mich., to be U.S. ambassador to Kuwait is facing what appear to be insurmountable odds as opposition to his confirmation grows among Senate Republicans, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
Senators on both sides of the aisle had privately expressed reservations about Ghalib’s nomination prior to his rocky confirmation hearing in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week, but his attempts to evade responsibility for his support of antisemitic positions prompted several Republicans on the committee to go public.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) announced at the end of Ghalib’s hearing last Thursday that he would not be able to support moving his nomination out of committee to the Senate floor. Sens. John Curtis (R-UT), John Cornyn (R-TX) and Dave McCormick (R-PA) have since followed suit. Others on the panel, including Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE), have said they plan to raise their concerns about Ghalib with the committee chairman, Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID), and the White House…
Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) will introduce a resolution this week affirming Israel’s sovereignty over the Temple Mount and demanding equal freedom of worship for all, JI’s Emily Jacobs scooped.
The resolution, if adopted, would put the House of Representatives on record as affirming “the inalienable right of the Jewish people to full access [of] the Temple Mount and the right to pray and worship on the Temple Mount, consistent with the principles of religious freedom.”
The current Israeli position, however, that Netanyahu has consistently affirmed, is to maintain the status quo at the holy site, which restricts Jewish prayer…
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), who led the the memorable questioning of university presidents at a House Education Committee hearing in December 2023, is coming out with a new book, titled Poisoned Ivies: The Inside Account of the Academic and Moral Rot at America’s Elite Universities, on April 7, 2026…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for reaction in Washington to Israel’s latest strikes in Gaza in response to Hamas’ ceasefire violations.
Tomorrow, the Future Investment Initiative continues its ninth annual conference in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
In the evening, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington is hosting its 2025 annual gala. Honorees include former Rep. David Trone (D-MD) and his wife, June, who is a JCRC board member; Behnam Dayanim, attorney and JCRC vice president; and Eva Davis, a realtor and co-chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington’s Network Council.
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COPYCAT EFFECT
Fairfax County schools denounce Muslim student groups promoting hostage taking, violence on social media
The DC area’s Jewish community council calls for the offending students to be disciplined
New polling and early voting data show a tightening New York City mayoral race, as Mamdani faces scrutiny over his allies, rhetoric on Israel and strained ties with Jewish voters
ANGELA WEISS,CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images
New York City mayoral candidate and democratic State Representative Zohran Mamdani (L) in New York City on April 16, 2025 and New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo (R) in New York City on April 13, 2025.
Even as Zohran Mamdani remains the front-runner heading into New York City’s mayoral election next Tuesday, some emerging signs indicate that his momentum is flagging in the final stretch of the race — underscoring potential vulnerabilities for the 34-year-old democratic socialist.
Early voting returns over the weekend, for example, showed a notable surge among older New Yorkers turning out in City Council districts on the Upper East and West Sides, in what some experts interpreted as more favorable results for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo — running as an independent after losing the primary to Mamdani.
Meanwhile, a new Suffolk University poll released on Monday showed a tightening race, with Cuomo cutting Mamdani’s lead in half to just 10 points — 44% to 34% — in the closing week before the election.
The polling followed a debate performance last week in which Mamdani frequently found himself on the defensive — and faced criticism from Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee, over his continued refusal to confirm his position on a series of ballot proposals.
“Cuomo’s numbers are going up because people are now paying more attention,” said Hank Sheinkopf, a Democratic consultant leading an anti-Mamdani super PAC.
Mamdani, a state assemblyman from Queens who would be New York City’s first Muslim mayor if elected, had spent the last few days accusing his rivals of pushing Islamophobic attacks, delivering a series of emotional addresses in which he expressed pride in his faith and vowed to “no longer look for myself in the shadows.”
The Democratic nominee came under scrutiny on Monday after clarifying that he had misidentified a family member who he said had stopped riding the subway after the 9/11 attacks, “because she did not feel safe in her hijab.” The woman, Mamdani said, was his father’s cousin, not his “aunt,” as he initially stated during a speech on Friday outside a mosque in the Bronx.
Despite his outreach to Jewish community leaders in recent weeks, Mamdani has doubled down on his base as the election reaches its conclusion. He held a rally on Sunday evening whose attendees included Hasan Piker, the far-left streamer who has espoused antisemitic rhetoric and has said “America deserved 9/11,” a comment Mamdani disavowed during a debate earlier this month.
Cuomo, who has recently escalated his criticism of Mamdani, said on Monday that Piker’s presence at the campaign rally “is insulting to all New Yorkers.” The former governor’s rebuke came after he himself had faced backlash for laughing with a conservative radio host who said that Mamdani would celebrate another attack like 9/11.
Thanks in part to his continued relationships with extreme figures, Mamdani’s recent campaign efforts have done little to reassure many Jewish voters who remain worried about his hostility to Israel and his refusal to condemn calls to “globalize the intifada,” among other issues.
“I think there’s a genuine and legitimate concern that Jews are not going to be comfortable living in New York with him as mayor,” said Mitchell Moss, professor of urban policy and planning at New York University. “This is not a matter of affordability but survivability,” he added, using a twist on Mamdani’s top campaign focus.
In an unprecedented show of organized Jewish opposition to Mamdani, more than 1,000 rabbis from all leading denominations signed on to an open letter last week that raised alarms about his candidacy and said that, if elected, he would threaten “the safety and dignity of Jews in every city.”
Mamdani has vowed to protect Jewish New Yorkers and voiced sensitivity to rising antisemitism across the city. He is likely to receive an endorsement from a Satmar Hasidic faction in Brooklyn representing a sizable constituency, according to a person familiar with the matter, following recent engagement with the community, which is theologically anti-Zionist.
But mainstream Jewish groups and leaders continue to hold reservations with Mamdani’s campaign. New York Solidarity Network, a local pro-Israel advocacy group, released an open letter on Monday urging all of the candidates in the race to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, oppose boycott efforts against Israel and “engage a broad spectrum of Jewish voices, including Zionists,” among other things.
The letter, which was presumably aimed at Mamdani but did not mention him by name, was signed by more than 5,500 Jewish New Yorkers, according to NYSN.
One Democratic consultant not currently involved in the mayoral race said Mamdani has “made some very questionable decisions about who he hangs out with and the rhetoric he uses” with regard to Israel — issues that a number of Jewish New Yorkers believe he has failed to adequately address in his campaign.
While the consultant echoed others who still expect that Mamdani will win next Tuesday, he added that the current trajectory of the race suggests his share of the vote may not ultimately be so commanding to deliver a mandate.
“Based on the data now, five points seems much more likely than 25 points,” the consultant said.
Plus, Brad Lander considers congressional bid
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) participates in the House Transportation Committee hearing on Thursday, June 27, 2024.
Good Monday afternoon!
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
I’m Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime briefing. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said today that Israel’s airstrike in Gaza over the weekend, which the IDF said targeted a Palestinian Islamic Jihad member who was planning a terror attack, did not violate the ongoing ceasefire with Hamas.
Rubio, who visited Jerusalem last week, told reporters standing next to President Donald Trump aboard Air Force One, “Israel didn’t surrender its right to self-defense. … We don’t view that as a violation of the ceasefire. They have a right — if there’s an imminent threat to Israel — and all the mediators agree to that”…
On the campaign trail, Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) became the first elected Democrat to call for Democratic Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner to drop out of the race to replace Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), saying he finds the candidate’s conduct “personally disqualifying,” Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports.
“This is a man who criticized and mocked police, rural Americans, and then put a Nazi tattoo on his body,” Auchincloss said. He expressed dissatisfaction with Platner’s defenses, in which the progressive candidate has claimed his actions aren’t a “liability.”
“I think it’s a liability, and I think we should have high standards for United States senators and one of them is: you don’t have a Nazi tattoo on your body,” Auchincloss continued…
Kevin Brown, the campaign manager for Platner, is stepping down after starting the job just last week, Axios scooped today. Brown told the outlet, “I started this campaign Tuesday but found out Friday we have a baby on the way. Graham deserves someone who is 100% in on his race and we want to lean into this new experience as a family”…
More than 160,000 New Yorkers submitted their ballot for New York City mayor with the start of early voting over the weekend, five times higher than the first weekend of early voting in 2021, according to Gothamist. Voters over 55 made up the majority of ballots cast, in contrast with the Democratic primary when voters ages 25-34 were first to the polls…
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who also ran in the mayoral Democratic primary and has been backing nominee Zohran Mamdani, is advancing plans to challenge Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) for his congressional seat, City & State New York reports.
“I’m very focused on helping Zohran win next Tuesday, and I’ll focus on after that, after that,” Lander told the outlet. At a rally for Mamdani over the weekend, Lander said “it’s more important than ever that we have leaders who understand this moment and will be partners to Zohran” in “the halls of Congress,” potentially hinting at his desire to run. Read JI’s reporting last month of the dynamics of a possible Lander-Goldman matchup…
Former Sen. John E. Sununu (R-NH), the former New Hampshire senator and part of an influential Granite State political family, officially launched his bid last week to take over the Senate seat of retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).
Sununu’s candidacy ensures a hotly contested GOP primary against former Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA), who served as ambassador to New Zealand during the first Trump administration. Brown, who announced his candidacy in June, served a partial term representing Massachusetts in the Senate from 2010-2012, only holding the seat for two years before being bested by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
Brown and Sununu, both of whom had pro-Israel records when they served in the Senate, will battle it out before taking on Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH), the expected Democratic nominee with a history of winning in a swing district…
In an interview with The New York Times, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said that he still believes the U.S. could elect a Jewish president in his lifetime, even in the face of frequent antisemitic violence like the Passover arson attack on his residence.
“Being open about my faith has opened me up to be able to have a deeper relationship with the people of Pennsylvania, allowed them to share their stories … We’re doing that in this ultimate swing state,” Shapiro, seen as a 2028 presidential contender, said…
Semafor reports on a new survey of hundreds of thousands of voters, conducted by a new center-left group called Welcome, that finds that 70% of voters think the Democratic Party over-prioritizes cultural issues. The report urges Democrats “to abandon some of the progressive language about race, abortion, and LGBTQ issues that Democrats began using after the 2012 election — and recommends the nomination of more candidates willing to vote with Republicans on conservative immigration and crime bills”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider tomorrow morning for reporting on Fairfax County Public Schools’ reaction to glorifications of violence by local Muslim Student Association chapters.
Tomorrow afternoon, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution will hold a hearing on “Politically Violent Attacks: A Threat to Our Constitutional Order.”
Jewish Federations of North America will hold a briefing tomorrow on how the deal that split off ownership of TikTok’s U.S. business may impact the social media platform’s treatment of antisemitic content.
The 39th World Zionist Congress kicks off in Jerusalem tomorrow with the largest U.S. delegation in history, made up of 155 delegates and approximately 100 alternates. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee will address a luncheon hosted by the American Zionist Movement ahead of the Congress’ opening.
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QUAD CONTROL
Harmeet Dhillon says DOJ will fight antisemitism through law, not speech codes
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The Reform leader told JI the Jewish community ‘has an obligation to counter’ the normalization of anti-Zionist views on the left
Screenshot
Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch speaks at the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York City on Feb. 28, 2025
As the New York City mayoral race nears its end, Manhattan Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch has a message for his colleagues: It’s not too late to provide “leadership and clarity of perspective” to voters to oppose Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, citing the candidate’s hostility towards Israel and refusal to recognize it as a Jewish state.
Hirsch, a prominent and notable moderate pro-Israel voice within the progressive-minded Reform movement isn’t surprised by polling showing Mamdani leading his opponents, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent, and Republican Curtis Sliwa, among unaffiliated and Reform Jews, who skew overwhelmingly liberal.
But Hirsch, the senior rabbi of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue, expressed frustration with the lack of organized effort among Jewish leaders to oppose Mamdani, whose affiliation with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and antagonistic views on Israel — including his refusal to condemn the term “globalize the intifada” — have generated private and public criticism.
In an interview with Jewish Insider on Wednesday, Hirsch, who has led the Upper West Side congregation for the past 20 years, said there is still time for left-wing Jewish leaders to find their voice. Even without initiatives and statements from the Reform movement, progressive Jewish leaders can still “make a difference” by “laying out the stakes” — even as early voting begins this Saturday.
Hirsch recently released an online video message, addressing Mamdani directly. “I do not speak for all Jews, but I do represent the views of the large majority of the New York Jewish community, which is increasingly concerned with your statements about Israel and the Jewish people,” the rabbi said. “Your opposition to Israel is not centered on policies, you reject the very existence of Israel as a Jewish state … I urge you to reconsider your long-held rejection of Israel’s right to exist. Be a uniter and a peacemaker.”
Following Hirsch’s video, other Jewish leaders began to follow his lead. Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove of the Conservative Park Avenue Synagogue on Manhattan’s Upper East Side said in an address to his congregation last Saturday, “Mamdani’s distinction between accepting Jews and denying a Jewish state is not merely a rhetorical sleight of hand or political naïveté — though it is to be clear both of those — his doing so is to traffic in the most dangerous of tropes.”
On Wednesday, more than 600 rabbis from around the country signed on to an open letter, “A Rabbinic Call to Action: Defending the Jewish Future,” spearheaded by The Jewish Majority.
“As rabbis from across the United States committed to the security and prosperity of the Jewish people, we are writing in our personal capacities to declare that we cannot remain silent in the face of rising anti-Zionism and its political normalization throughout our nation,” the letter states.
“When public figures like New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani refuse to condemn violent slogans, deny Israel’s legitimacy, and accuse the Jewish state of genocide, they, in the words of Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, ‘Delegitimize the Jewish community and encourage and exacerbate hostility toward Judaism and Jews.’”
Hirsch, who serves as president of the New York Board of Rabbis, sat down with JI to discuss the current moment, one that he called “an obligation — it’s the call of history — for Jewish leaders to stand up” ahead of the Nov. 4 election.
Jewish Insider: You’ve been raising your voice against Mamdani, but with voting starting this weekend, do you think other Jewish leaders who have just started speaking out took too long?
Ammiel Hirsch: The Jewish world has very serious self-reflection to do in the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks. Everything has changed and the future will be different than what it was going to be pre-Oct. 7. The American Jewish community has substantial — in some respects unprecedented — challenges in the years to come.
The kind of antisemitism we are seeing now and likely to see in the future is different and more widespread than anything anyone alive has experienced. Our relationship with Israel has to be reassessed and reevaluated. How we teach our young people has to be reassessed and evaluated and the nature of the American Jewish community itself — we are seeing a deep polarization that should have taken everybody by surprise. During crunch time, when Israel was under real existential threat, we didn’t expect this kind of polarization around the idea of the existence of Israel.
Everything needs to be reevaluated. I concluded over the last two years that certain things I was perhaps willing to overlook in favor of other values and interests need to be looked at more carefully now. I’m not prepared to overlook candidates for public office who express fundamental anti-Zionism. We need to draw the line on anti-Zionism because it disenfranchises and delegitimizes Judaism itself. It leads to an intensification of antisemitism.
JI: Are you surprised there hasn’t been more of an organized effort among the Jewish community to challenge Mamdani since he won the primary in June? Has the Jewish world met the moment?
AH: We’ve been slow to respond to widespread, pervasive, global anti-Zionism and we’ve been slow inside the Jewish community in countering Jewish voices who are anti-Zionist. We, the mainstream of the Jewish community, have an obligation to counter that ideology. If it’s not countered, it intensifies and exacerbates the problem and that relates to public candidates as well. It’s imperative for the American Jewish community to stand up and express the kinds of views that I expressed. I think more are doing so. It is a responsibility at this historic moment in time for Jewish leadership to do so.
It would have been better had it been earlier, but it’s welcome — and imperative — at any time. It does make a difference and I urge everybody, especially those in Jewish leadership, to lay out the stakes. I say this as a Jewish leader, but I’m a New Yorker and U.S. citizen as well and care about the well-being of the city and country. It goes way beyond the well-being of the Jewish community.
Judaism has a lot to say about poverty, economics, immigration, the death penalty — all of those issues are important as well. But specifically on the anti-Zionism issue, it goes to the very existence and future of the Jewish people. Anti-Zionism means dismantling the place where half of the world’s Jews live. That’s the intention of the anti-Zionist enemies of Israel and Zohran Mamdani is giving them ideological and communal support. It’s an obligation — it’s the call of history — for Jewish leaders to stand up at this moment of Jewish history. Our people need leadership and clarity of perspective from their leaders. They’re thirsting for Jewish leaders to clarify what is in the best interest of the Jewish people and what is in the best interest of our values. Not to do that is to fail at this inflection point of American and world Jewish history. I’m heartened that more American Jewish leaders are speaking up now, but not enough.
JI: What do you make of the recent IRS reversal allowing rabbis and other clergy members to make political endorsements from the pulpit? One of the most recent examples being by another prominent New York City rabbi, Elliot Cosgrove, who heads the Park Avenue Synagogue. He decried Mamdani in a speech to his congregation last Shabbat, saying he believes the front-runner “poses a danger to the security of the New York Jewish community.”
AH: For me, I uphold the Johnson Amendment [a 1954 provision in the U.S. tax code that prohibits all 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations from endorsing or opposing political candidates], no matter what the IRS decided to enforce. I do not endorse political parties or candidates. I speak about policies, which are directly relevant to our roles as rabbis and Jewish leaders. Policies reflect public morality. I’m not going to become partisan. It’s wrong on principle, because we receive tax relief status on the basis of our commitment to being nonpartisan. It weakens us because it unnecessarily splits the community and runs the risk of making synagogues into political centers. I try very carefully to speak about general policies and not endorse parties or candidates. That’s why my message was in the form that it was [speaking to Mamdani directly].
In my message, I was turning to the candidate himself. I didn’t tell people what my political preferences were or how they should vote. My message was that anti-Zionism endangers the Jewish community.
JI: Polls that look at Reform, Conservative and Orthodox voters have found Reform Jews are more supportive of Mamdani — why do you think that is? You’ve authored several essays, both before and after Oct. 7, about why the Reform movement is more inclined towards criticizing Israel than other branches of Judaism. Is that a driving factor here for support for Mamdani?
AH: The more liberal a person is the more likely they are to resonate and support liberal candidates, so it’s not surprising to me. The Reform movement started in North America as a religious movement that negated the centrality of Jewish peoplehood, so of course they were going to resonate more to universal values, not as an expression of Jewish peoplehood values, but the negation of it. Part of that still exists and the more years go by that Jews do not perceive an existential threat against the Jewish community, the more they return to that inclination towards universalism — that Jewish peoplehood is the problem. I’ve called that out for years now and I think that does play a role. It’s why I feel so strongly that I need to speak out.
I do not consider anti-Zionism to be a liberal position, it’s illiberal and I think many people are confused. Zionism is the liberation movement of the Jewish people, that’s a liberal philosophy.
JI: Would you like to see the Union for Reform Judaism come out with an official statement against Mamdani?
AH: I don’t participate in the decisions of the URJ. As I said, I believe it’s important for every Jewish leader to speak up at this inflection point of American Jewish history, so I would welcome it from everybody across the board.
I’ve seen some very good statements from our Orthodox colleagues. We need to unite as much as possible. There is room for debate and disputation, it’s part of Judaism, but at this critical moment in Jewish history we should seek to lay aside for another day controversies that distract us from the main objective that we have, which is to counter antisemitism and a form of anti-Zionism that constitutes antisemitism.
All of us need to unite on that because we’re a small minority and the task is monumental. If we don’t voice a common position, then what happens is we give an impression that the Jewish community is split on the very essence of the contemporary Jewish experience, which is the centrality of Jewish peoplehood and support of the Jewish state. We give the impression that the small minority of Jews, who are very noisy, constitute a much bigger component of Judaism than they really are. That’s another reason we need to counter this loudly.
In our movement, which is the most liberal of affiliated American Jews, there are some anti-Zionist voices but the overwhelming majority of the Reform movement is pro-Israel and considers Israel to be a component of their own Jewish identity.
JI: What are some ways in which you would encourage synagogues and Jewish institutions to engage with Mamdani if he is elected mayor?
AH: If he becomes mayor, he will have been elected fair and square. Then we’ll have to try our best to work with him where we can and oppose him when we must.
Given that this anti-Zionist philosophy is mainstream, it is imperative for American Jewish leaders to stand up, push back. People will vote how they vote and whoever wins will reflect the will of the people and then we’ll have to work within those constraints.
Mamdani’s pledge, announced at the last general election debate, is a signal of the DSA-backed candidate’s attempt to moderate on the issue of policing
Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Zohran Mamdani, New York City mayoral candidate, during a mayoral debate in New York, US, on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025.
Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, confirmed that he would ask Jessica Tisch to stay on as the city’s police commissioner if elected, ending longstanding speculation over his plans for a key role in his potential administration.
Tisch, appointed last year by outgoing Mayor Eric Adams, “took on a broken status quo, started to deliver accountability, rooting out corruption and reducing crime across the five boroughs,” Mamdani said at the second and final general election debate on Wednesday evening.
“I have said time and again that my litmus test for that position will be excellence, and the alignment will be of that position,” Mamdani added. “And I am confident that under a Mamdani administration, we would continue to deliver on that same mission.”
Mamdani’s choice could assuage concerns among moderate Democrats and other crime-conscious New Yorkers who had been hopeful that he would choose Tisch, a widely respected technocrat who previously led the Department of Sanitation.
Tisch, 44, who is Jewish, has not said whether she would plan to continue in her position if Mamdani is elected on Nov. 4.
Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist and Queens state assemblyman, has faced scrutiny over his past comments on law enforcement — including support for defunding the police. He has moderated during his mayoral campaign and says he no longer backs such efforts, even as he has pledged to pursue some goals that could potentially fuel tension, such as launching a Department of Community Safety “to ensure that mental health experts” instead of police “are responding to the mental health crisis,” he said at the debate.
Mandani’s opponents, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa, also said they would not seek to replace Tisch, though Sliwa, the Republican nominee, said he did not think she would choose to remain in her role if Cuomo or Mamdani is elected. Cuomo, running as an independent, said he did not believe Mamdani would follow through on his promise.
“His position has been to defund, disband the police, she wouldn’t take that,” Cuomo claimed, saying “their philosophies are totally incongruous.”
Elsewhere in the debate Wednesday, Cuomo and Sliwa ramped up their attacks on Mamdani over his strident opposition to Israel and refusal to condemn calls to “globalize the intifada,” continued sources of concern among Jewish voters.
Cuomo, who has recently escalated his criticism of Mamdani to a more personal level, accused him of stoking “the flames of hatred against Jewish people” during a particularly heated moment at the debate — while Sliwa cast the Democratic frontrunner as an “arsonist who fans the flames of antisemitism.”
Mamdani, playing defense on an issue that represents one of his top vulnerabilities, said that there “is room for disagreement on many positions and many policies,” and pushed back against Sliwa’s claim that he supports “global jihad.”
“I’ve heard from New Yorkers about their fears about antisemitism in this city, and what they deserve is a leader who takes it seriously, who roots it out of these five boroughs, not weaponizes it as a means by which to score political points on a debate stage,” Mamdani said.
The NYC Democrat said he asked Mamdani to speak out against anti-Israel violence but ‘I frankly haven’t really seen him do much on that’
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) outside the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building on August 07, 2025 in New York City.
Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) said on Tuesday, just days before early voting starts in the New York City mayoral race, that he is still not ready to endorse Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, as he hasn’t seen the candidate assuage Jewish communal concerns.
Appearing on CNN, Goldman said he wasn’t sure if he would vote for Mamdani or his rival, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and that he’s “trying to work through” outstanding issues he has with the candidates.
“You know, I’m a Democrat at heart and I believe in the Democratic Party. I am very concerned about some of the rhetoric coming from Zohran Mamdani, and I can tell you as a Jew in New York who was in Israel on Oct. 7, I and many other people are legitimately scared because there has been violence in the name of anti-Israel, anti-Zionism,” said Goldman, a pro-Israel Democrat whose House district, covering Lower Manhattan and a swath of Brooklyn, leans heavily to the left.
“I’ve asked [Mamdani] to speak out on that and to condemn that and I frankly haven’t really seen him do much on that. And I believe, for my personal reasons as well as my professional reasons as a representative of New York City, that it is my duty to make sure that everybody, including the Jewish community, feels safe here, and many in the Jewish community do not feel safe right now,” the congressman continued.
“And I hope that Mr. Mamdani takes that to heart and takes some action to make the Jewish community understand that he will keep us safe and secure,” he concluded.
Goldman is one of several Democratic New York lawmakers who have refused to endorse their party’s candidate for Gracie Mansion, including swing district Reps. Laura Gillen (D-NY) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY) as well as George Latimer (D-NY).
Other prominent New York Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have met with Mamdani but have held back endorsements.
Only five New York City Democratic lawmakers in the state’s congressional delegation have endorsed Mamdani: Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY),Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Yvette Clarke (D-NY).
The list of signatories includes leaders of some of the largest synagogues in New York City, representing all the leading Jewish denominations
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani answers questions on October 17, 2025 in New York City.
Over 800 rabbis from around the country signed on to an open letter on Wednesday voicing concern that, if elected New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani would threaten “the safety and dignity of Jews in every city,” citing the Democratic nominee and front-runner’s antagonistic views towards Israel.
“As rabbis from across the United States committed to the security and prosperity of the Jewish people, we are writing in our personal capacities to declare that we cannot remain silent in the face of rising anti-Zionism and its political normalization throughout our nation,” wrote the rabbis, representing the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox movements.
In the letter, “A Rabbinic Call to Action: Defending the Jewish Future,” spearheaded by The Jewish Majority, signatories called out Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada,” noted his denial of Israel’s legitimacy as a Jewish state and condemned his repeated accusations that Israel committed genocide in its war against Hamas in Gaza.
“We will not accept a culture that treats Jewish self-determination as a negotiable ideal or Jewish inclusion as something to be ‘granted,’” the letter continued. “The safety and dignity of Jews in every city depend on rejecting that false choice.”
The signatories include the leaders of some of the largest synagogues in New York City, including Rabbi Joshua Davidson, senior rabbi at Temple Emanu-El; Rabbi David Gelfand, senior rabbi at Temple Israel of the City of New York; Rabbi Chaim Steinmetz, senior rabbi at Kehilath Jeshurun; Rabbi David Ingber, founder of Romemu and senior director of Jewish Life and the Bronfman Center at 92NY; and Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, president of the New York Board of Rabbis and senior rabbi of Stephen Wise Free Synagogue.
The letter, published three days before early voting for the Nov. 4 election begins, comes as some Jewish leaders have expressed frustration over a lack of organized opposition to Mamdani, who leads against his opponents, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, running as an independent, and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa.
It points to two recent public pleas from prominent New York City rabbis decrying Mamdani.
“I do not speak for all Jews, but I do represent the views of the large majority of the New York Jewish community, which is increasingly concerned with your statements about Israel and the Jewish people,” Hirsch said in an online video last week, in which he was addressing Mamdani directly. “Your opposition to Israel is not centered on policies, you reject the very existence of Israel as a Jewish state… I urge you to reconsider your long-held rejection of Israel’s right to exist. Be a uniter and a peacemaker.”
Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove of the Park Avenue Synagogue said in an address to his congregation last Saturday, “Mamdani’s distinction between accepting Jews and denying a Jewish state is not merely a rhetorical sleight of hand or political naïveté — though it is, to be clear, both of those — his doing so is to traffic in the most dangerous of tropes.”
The letter goes on to urge “interfaith and communal partners to stand with the Jewish community in rejecting this dangerous rhetoric and to affirm the rights of Jews to live securely and with dignity.”
It continues, “Now is the time for everyone to unite across political and moral divides, and to reject the language that seeks to delegitimize our Jewish identity and our community.”
Even as the Democratic nominee has drawn criticism over his recent meeting with Siraj Wahhaj, political experts say that such backlash is unlikely to influence the outcome of the Nov. 4 election
Angelina Katsanis-Pool/Getty Images
Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani speaks during a mayoral debate at Rockefeller Center on October 16, 2025 in New York City.
In previous mayoral elections in New York City, a candidate’s meeting with a controversial imam who was listed as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing — and who has stridently opposed homosexuality and condemned America as “filthy” and “sick,” among other extreme remarks — might be expected to meaningfully dent support for his campaign.
But even as Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, has drawn criticism over his recent meeting with Siraj Wahhaj, a Brooklyn imam who leads Masjid at-Taqwa in Bedford-Stuyvesant, political experts say that such backlash is unlikely to influence the outcome of the Nov. 4 election.
That Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist and Queens state assemblyman, appears poised to withstand scrutiny over his relationship with Wahhaj, which he has defended, underscores how dramatically the political environment has changed in New York City — where the emotional resonance of the 9/11 terror attacks has long played a central role in campaigns and elections.
“Dead cops and firefighters don’t seem to matter much these days,” Hank Sheinkopf, a Democratic consultant who is leading an anti-Mamdani super PAC, told Jewish Insider on Monday. “I think it’s a generational question,” he added, noting that “the people who are voting for” Mamdani “weren’t even born on Sept. 11.”
While he said that Mamdani’s meeting “isn’t helpful” and could ultimately push some voters concerned about public safety to instead back one of his rivals — including the Republican nominee, Curtis Sliwa, or former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, running on an independent line — “the question is whether they can generate a vote,” according to Sheinkopf.
“That’s not clear yet,” he explained, saying the controversy could be “buried under” Mamdani’s continued focus on affordability, which helped drive his upset over Cuomo in the Democratic primary in June.
Both Cuomo and Sliwa have attacked Mamdani for the meeting, with the former governor zeroing in on Wahhaj’s history of homophobic comments — including remarks in which the imam called homosexuality “a disease.”
Mamdani, who would be the first Muslim mayor of New York City if elected, has dismissed criticism of his Friday meeting with Wahhaj — whom he praised as “one of the nation’s foremost Muslim leaders and a pillar of the Bed-Stuy community for nearly half a century.”
Mamdani claimed over the weekend that Mayor Eric Adams as well as former New York City Mayors Bill de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg had met with the imam or campaigned with him. “The only time it became an issue of national attention was when I met with him, and that’s because of the fact of my faith and because I’m on the precipice of winning this election,” he argued.
Bloomberg, who faced backlash for inviting Wahhaj to a meeting with Muslim leaders in 2009, later said he would not have been likely to include the imam if he was aware of his background, even as the former mayor vowed “to reach out to everybody” during his time in office.
While de Blasio delivered remarks at Masjid at-Taqwa in 2021, it was unclear if he met with Wahhaj while serving as mayor. De Blasio, who has endorsed Mamdani, did not respond to a request for comment from JI on Monday.
For his part, Adams, who is no longer seeking reelection, appeared alongside Wahhaj at an interfaith breakfast in 2015, when he was Brooklyn borough president, though he does not appear to have previously campaigned with the imam, as Mamdani suggested.
“If the assemblymember wants to liken himself to Mayor Adams, perhaps he should also join the mayor in condemning Hamas, denouncing the phrase ‘globalize the intifada,’ and speaking out against the surge of vile antisemitic hate we’ve witnessed across our city and country since Oct. 7,” Kayla Mamelak Altus, a spokesperson for Adams, said in a statement to JI on Monday. “Something tells me he won’t.”
Wahhaj, who could not be reached for comment, was included by federal prosecutors on a list of unindicted co-conspirators in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. He was never charged and has denied ties to the attack, which killed six people.
Delivering a lecture in Toronto in 1993, Wahhaj speculated that the Mossad, the Israeli national intelligence agency, could have been behind the bombing, according to an online transcript of his remarks. “Can I say the Mossad did it? No. But I’ll say one thing. It has the fingerprints of agencies like the Mossad,” Wahhaj allegedly said.
Despite such comments, the fallout over Mamdani’s meeting with Wahhaj has been relatively limited — a dynamic that one Democratic consultant in New York City attributed in part to “a willingness to move away from traditional allies and embrace radical actors” on both sides of the aisle.
“We are at the point of insanity that a candidate for mayor is meeting with someone with a well-documented history of radicalism and bigotry, including espousing a belief that white people are the devil and associating with violent extremists who’ve committed acts of terrorism, including several of his own children who ran a terrorist training camp,” the consultant, who asked to remain anonymous to speak candidly, told JI.
But ultimately, he added, “the media ecosystem is so fractured that it is very hard this late in the game to introduce new information to truly persuadable voters in a way that trumps their concerns about other issues.”
There are a number of upcoming key elections that will test the power of the mainstream against extremist forces
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Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, attends an endorsement event from the union DC 37 on July 15, 2025, in New York City.
Last Friday, we laid out how American Jewry is facing a fork in the road in the aftermath of the Gaza war and release of hostages, and that the coming months will be crucial in assessing whether Jews will experience a renewed period of normalcy or whether the rising tide of anti-Israel sentiment and antisemitism will continue unabated.
There are a number of upcoming key elections that will test the power of the mainstream against extremist forces. Here are the developments we’ll be watching most closely.
Will Zohran Mamdani win a majority of the New York City vote, and how will he govern if elected as mayor? Right now, without any surge in funding and organization among anti-Mamdani forces in Gotham, it’s looking very likely that the far-left candidate will prevail. But polls still show him consistently under 50%, without gaining any real momentum since winning the Democratic primary. And half of the six most recent public polls in the race (as tracked by RealClearPolitics) show the anti-Mamdani candidates collectively winning more of the vote than the front-runner. This race doesn’t at all look like a mandate for the far left.
If Mamdani wins, the next big question is whether he’ll govern more pragmatically than his past record would suggest. Will he try to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York City, as he has consistently said he would do on the campaign trail? Will he threaten the tax-exempt status of Jewish groups because they support Israel? Will he reappoint Jessica Tisch, the effective NYPD chief, as a signal of his willingness to moderate?
He’s been wooing business leaders and working to spin reporters that he’s not as ideological as his political career suggests, but that may be more wishful thinking than anything based on a careful scrutiny of his comments and record.
Will Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) or Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) receive a serious primary challenge? Massie and Greene are the two members of the small but loud faction of the anti-Israel and increasingly antisemitic crowd among House Republicans. Not coincidentally, they also are the two Republicans that are most antagonistic towards President Donald Trump — from calling for a release of the government files on Jeffrey Epstein to, in Greene’s case, agreeing with some Democratic health care demands during the government shutdown.
Massie looks more politically vulnerable, with Trump and his allies actively recruiting a challenger to run against him and releasing internal polling showing he can be defeated. Former Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, who ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Kentucky Senate last year, looks like Trump’s favored candidate. But no one has yet announced a challenge, with the filing deadline less than three months away (Jan. 9).
Greene looks safer, but her increasing Trump criticism could change that dynamic. The filing deadline in Georgia isn’t until March 2026.
How credible a threat will Graham Platner pose to Gov. Janet Mills in Maine’s Democratic Senate primary? Under normal political circumstances, an established two-term governor would hold a commanding advantage over an oyster farmer without any elective experience in a race for the Senate. That’s especially true given that the challenger has a long paper trail of comments calling himself a communist and embracing a laundry list of radical views.
Yet Platner has parlayed his rough-and-tumble biography and anti-establishment authenticity into media buzz, and raised an impressive $4 million for the race since announcing his candidacy over the summer.
Mills, who is 77 and the favorite of Democratic Party leaders, starts out as the favorite to win the nomination. Platner has lately been facing scrutiny over his lengthy string of social media posts where he identified as a communist, called all police “bastards” and said rural Americans are racist and stupid, among other incendiary comments. He also downplayed concerns of sexual assault in the military in online forums.
Normally, those types of views and comments would be political career-enders. But in this anti-establishment, populist moment, it’s hard to be confident in assuming the traditional rules of politics apply. After all, Mamdani has weathered scrutiny of his own radical affiliations without suffering outsized political consequences.
In addition to holding down-the-line progressive views on the economy, Platner is also uniquely hostile to Israel, even to the point of releasing a digital attack ad against the pro-Israel advocacy group AIPAC. Shortly after launching his campaign for the Senate, Platner labeled Israel’s war against Hamas a genocide.
Mills, as governor, doesn’t have much of a foreign policy record but has spoken out against Israel boycott measures embraced by municipal leaders in Portland. But as the candidate representing more-mainstream Maine Democrats, it’s likely she will adopt a more-moderate posture when it comes to Middle East policy.
Will Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares be rewarded for his work against antisemitism? For a while, it looked like there would be a sizable blue wave in this November’s Virginia statewide elections, with Trump unpopular in the state and the DOGE-fueled government layoffs juicing up Democratic engagement.
That leaves Miyares, the state’s Republican attorney general who has targeted terrorist funding from anti-Israel groups in the state and called on Virginia’s universities to aggressively confront antisemitism, in a precarious political position.
But a shocking scandal involving his Democratic opponent, former state legislator Jay Jones, has upended the race and given Miyares a good chance to win reelection. The revelation of text messages from Jones wishing violence against one of his GOP colleagues has drawn bipartisan outrage, and led some Democrats to distance themselves from him. Public polling has been sparse, but recent surveys have shown Miyares pulling ahead in the race after trailing throughout the year.
One nonpartisan Jewish leader in Virginia told Jewish Insider that Miyares was one of the most effective and engaged elected officials in countering antisemitism, and the race was emerging as a key bellwether of whether Jewish voters would reward GOP officials for their allyship.
One example of Miyares’ bipartisanship: the Virginia attorney general played a key role in working to remove the anti-Israel protest encampment outside former Secretary of State Tony Blinken’s Northern Virginia home after progressive local government officials declined to do so.
Can Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) prove anti-Israel activists on social media are more bark than bite? The other big Democratic Senate showdown is taking place in Michigan, the state with a sizable Jewish constituency but also the largest share of Arab voters in the country.
Stevens starts out as the front-runner, thanks to her record of winning tough elections, successful fundraising and backing from many national Democratic leaders. She has also been a stalwart supporter of Israel, easily toppling an anti-Israel Democratic challenger in a closely watched 2022 Democratic primary against another sitting member of Congress. She’s a favorite of the politically engaged Jewish Democratic community, many of whom have championed her candidacy.
But with the political winds on Israel in the Democratic Party shifting, Stevens will be facing her fiercest test against two challengers running campaigns that are decidedly more hostile towards Israel. Abdul el-Sayed, an acolyte of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), has long been an opponent of the Jewish state, and is likely to win over many Arab-American voters with anti-Israel views.
State Sen. Mallory McMorrow began her campaign sounding more in the pro-Israel camp, but has grown steadily more hostile as Democratic voters have turned more critical of the Jewish state. This month, she said she considered Israel’s war in Gaza to be a genocide.
Stevens is still widely viewed as a favorite, and led the pack in fundraising in the just-completed third fundraising quarter. She also benefits from the possibility that McMorrow and el-Sayed split the progressive, anti-Israel vote, leaving more-mainstream Democratic voters in her camp.
But if anti-Israel sentiment becomes a litmus test for more Democratic primary voters, Stevens could face headwinds down the road. This primary, taking place next August, is as clear a test as there is of the size and depth of hostility towards Israel in the Democratic Party.
Will socialist, anti-Israel candidates prevail outside of New York City? While Mamdani’s Democratic Socialists of America-aligned mayoral campaign has gotten outsized attention, socialist candidates in the mold of Mamdani are running for mayor of other big cities across the country.
In Minneapolis, the city’s liberal Minneapolis mayor, Jacob Frey (who is Jewish), is facing a DSA-backed challenge from Omar Fateh. Fateh, a state senator, is a BDS supporter and hired senior staffers who defended the Oct. 7 terror attacks, and have called for the dismantlement of Israel. This race is expected to be close, according to in-state analysts.
The other notable contest is in Seattle, where Mayor Bruce Harrell finished in second place in an August primary to a self-declared socialist challenger, Katie Wilson. The two candidates are facing off in the general election, where Harrell is now seen as an underdog. Wilson has spoken out less about Israel and the war in Gaza than many of her socialist counterparts, but many Jewish leaders in Seattle are concerned about her overall record.
The New York Democrat praised Trump for the hostage deal: ‘We thank God and congratulate President Trump and all those who helped make the return of the hostages a reality’
Craig Ruttle-Pool/Getty Images
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) debates in the race for governor at the studios of WNBC4-TV June 16, 2022 in New York City.
In recent months, Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) has stood apart from many of his Democratic colleagues in offering staunch support for Israel, openly praising President Donald Trump for finalizing a deal to free the hostages in Gaza and maintaining a hard line against New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani.
Suozzi, a moderate Democrat who hails from a swing district on Long Island with a significant Jewish population, is a longtime stalwart supporter of Israel, and argued in a recent interview with Jewish Insider that maintaining bipartisanship on the issue is critical.
Suozzi has been among the minority of Democrats who have openly credited Trump for the ceasefire that secured the release of the remaining living hostages in Gaza last week.
“We thank God and congratulate President Trump and all those who helped make the return of the hostages a reality. As we celebrate this moment, let us also pause to pray for all those who have endured so much suffering, death and destruction along the way,” Suozzi told JI last Monday, after the hostages were freed.
“It’s plain on its face that the president orchestrated this and put a tremendous amount of effort into this,” he continued. “I disagree with the president on certain things, but when it comes to this issue, I’m fully aligned with him.”
Suozzi said that the Torah and Old Testament teach that it’s critical to stick to one’s values and keep moving forward in hard times.
“One of the values that we need to stick by right now is to stand with the State of Israel, who’s our great ally and shares our values during what has been difficult times,” Suozzi said. “The president is the one who’s accomplished — along with a lot of help from other people — this very important thing, we have to praise him for that, even though I disagree with him on a whole host of other things. On this, he’s really done something remarkable.”
Suozzi noted that he had also supported Trump’s signing of the Abraham Accords and decision to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem during his first term.
“We have to get back to a place in our American governing and politics where people can disagree, where they disagree respectfully, but also give credit where credit is due in trying to work together to to solve problems,” Suozzi explained. “I want to work with the president. … If he could do Ukraine and an immigration deal — which would require some bipartisan cooperation — he would truly have cemented his place in history. I want to be helpful in that respect.”
Asked about those in the Democratic Party — including some of the most vocal critics of Israel — who have refused to credit Trump or acknowledge the ceasefire that went into effect earlier this week, Suozzi said he sees them as hypocritical.
“It’s the pot calling the kettle black. They criticize Trump for being partisan, or they criticize Republicans for being partisan — which they are, I’m not saying they’re not,” Suozzi said. “When you have something like this that happens, you can’t just base it on your party. It has to be based on what’s right and what’s wrong. This is clearly right. This is clearly a good thing.”
He also said that people, on both sides of the aisle, who understand the damage wrought by antisemitism, “have to join league with each other, regardless of our political party, and work together to do everything we can to stamp it out. In the short term: hold people accountable and prosecute them. In the long term: educate our society about where antisemitism comes from and why it’s so destructive.”
Suozzi said that both in the Democratic Party and the country as a whole, “we have to do a better job” of rooting out and calling out antisemitism.
“It’s not always easy to take on people that are on your team, so to speak,” he continued. “But I think there’s a lot of people on the wrong side of history here. This is an important moment with the enabling of the haters, with social media, with the algorithms on the different platforms — especially TikTok — that are inciting this hateful behavior and the foothold that some malign actors have been working — not just recently but over decades — to build this hate machine. We have to really stand strong against this, even when we have to disagree with people that are on our team, so to speak.”
“At a time when most have hidden beneath the parapet, the Jewish community is very lucky to have fearless leaders like Tom, who willingly stands up to the antisemitic haters and unflinchingly protects the U.S.-Israel relationship,” Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), another outspoken pro-Israel moderate, told JI.
Suozzi, along with Rep. Laura Gillen (D-NY), has been among the most vocal opponents within New York Democratic politics of Mamdani’s candidacy — publicly condemning the democratic socialist and explicitly rejecting the prospect of endorsing him, when other Democrats have fallen in line or remained silent. Among other issues, Suozzi has called out Mamdani for his refusal to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada.”
Suozzi has also pushed back more broadly on the left wing of his party.
“If [Mamdani] wants to be a socialist, he should form his own party and not be part of the Democratic Party,” he said, a sentiment he has directed at the Democratic Socialists of America as a whole.
Asked how he thinks supporters of Israel and opponents of antisemitism can go about rebuilding the eroding bipartisan consensus on these issues, Suozzi said that it’s critical for supporters of Israel to vote for Democrats like himself who are aligned with them on that issue.
He recounted a conversation he had with longtime friends who are Orthodox Jews and who said they had voted against Suozzi in the last election, opting instead to vote down the Republican Party line.
“The person I was speaking with said, ‘We need to get your party back to what it was,’” Suozzi recounted. “I said, ‘Well then you have to support Democrats like me that are working on that. Because you don’t know what things are going to be like in five years, or 10 years, or 15 years or 20 years. The key to the future is to ensure that this continues to be a bipartisan effort, this relationship between the United States and Israel.’”
Suozzi said that his commitment to standing with Israel and the Jewish people is deep-rooted, tracing back in part to his father, his own history and the values and democratic principles shared by the U.S. and Israel.
His father — “the best man I ever knew” — was an Italian immigrant who fought in World War II and faced discrimination at home after the war. “He would not tolerate any sort of discrimination [against] anybody. … If anybody said something that was anti-Jewish or anti-Black or anti-anything, he’d either confront you or get up and walk out of the room.”
Suozzi said that he found an Israeli war bond in his father’s files after he passed away. “He never talked about anything like that, it was just who he was.”
Suozzi said that reading Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl, about the psychologist’s experience in the Holocaust, was deeply impactful on him as a high school student. He first traveled to Israel as Nassau County executive in October 2002, meeting with key leaders during the Second Intifada.
He said that his hotel was largely empty due to terrorism concerns, that heavy security was necessary for his group and that the trip organizers attempted to prohibit him from going to mass at the Church of The Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem for security reasons.
Undeterred, Suozzi snuck out of his hotel to go and initially felt “so courageous” but, walking out of the church, “I see these little girls getting on the bus to go to school that morning. … It was like, ‘Wow, I’m not courageous. People have been living like this … 60 years, living their lives, making this place successful, despite the fact that everybody in the area is trying to kill them. And they’ve held onto their values, and they’ve held onto the things that I believe in.’ So I decided right then and there that I would always stand strong with Israel, no matter what.”
The Jewish advocacy group slammed Mamdani’s insistence on calling Israel’s war against Hamas a genocide and ‘lack of moral clarity’
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani briefly speaks with reporters as he leaves the Dirksen Senate Office Building on July 16, 2025 in Washington, DC.
The American Jewish Committee raised alarms on Friday about Zohran Mamdani’s “continued use of problematic rhetoric as it relates to Israel and Jews” and called on the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City to “change course” as he prepares for the Nov. 4 election.
In a lengthy statement, the nonpartisan organization cited, among other things, Mamdani’s repeated claim that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, which the AJC called “unequivocally false and dangerous.” The charge “has not been proven in any international court” and “gives fodder to those who continue to use Israel’s self-defensive actions as an excuse to threaten and attack Jews,” the group said.
The AJC also criticized Mamdani’s refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, saying that he is upholding an “unacceptable double standard” in his assessment of the region. “Israel is surrounded by Muslim countries,” the group wrote, “yet Mamdani does not continuously suggest that any of those nations should not exist as they are.”
And the organization took issue with what it characterized as Mamdani’s “lack of consistent moral clarity on Hamas,” pointing to a Fox News interview on Wednesday in which he sidestepped a question about whether Hamas should disarm and relinquish its leadership role in Gaza.
Mamdani, a democratic socialist assemblyman who has long been involved in anti-Israel activism, later clarified during the first general election debate on Thursday that Hamas “should lay down” its arms, but he did not share his views on its future role in the conflict.
The AJC, which has also recently highlighted concerns about Mamdani’s refusal to condemn calls to “globalize the intifada,” said in its statement that it feels “compelled to speak out when public figures use rhetoric or endorse policies that harm Jews.”
It urged Mamdani “to engage in dialogue and consultation with organizations and segments of the mainstream New York Jewish community,” with which he has had a tense relationship throughout the campaign and as an elected official in Albany.
“By continuing to prioritize anti-Zionist synagogues and groups, Mamdani ignores the perspectives and concerns of the vast majority of Jewish New Yorkers,” the group said.
Mamdani, who has stepped up his Jewish outreach efforts in recent weeks with limited success, has rejected claims that his views fuel antisemitism and vowed to increase funding to counter hate crimes by 800% if he is elected.
“One of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had over the course of this campaign has been the conversations I’ve had with Jewish New Yorkers,” Mamdani said at the debate on Thursday.
A spokesperson for Mamdani did not respond to a request for comment.
But the NYC mayoral nominee hasn’t spoken out against the streamer’s long history of antisemitic rhetoric
Angelina Katsanis-Pool/Getty Images
Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani speaks during a mayoral debate at Rockefeller Center on October 16, 2025 in New York City.
Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, expressed disagreement on Thursday with comments by Hasan Piker, a far-left streamer who has said “America deserved 9/11,” after several months in which the state assembly member had declined to condemn such rhetoric.
“I find the comments that Hasan made on 9/11 to be objectionable and reprehensible,” Mamdani said during the first general election debate on Thursday night, where he traded barbs with former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is trailing in the polls as he mounts an independent run following his primary loss to Mamdani in June.
Still, Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist, defended his decision to appear on Piker’s show for an extensive interview during the primary — even as the streamer has otherwise frequently stirred controversy for using antisemitic rhetoric in his commentary on Israel and Jewish issues.
“I also think that part of the reason why Democrats are in the situation that we are in, of being a permanent minority in this country, is we are looking only to speak to journalists and streamers and Americans with whom we agree on every single thing that they say,” Mamdani argued, while making no mention of Piker’s antisemitic comments. “We need to take the case to every person, and I am happy to do that.”
Piker has faced criticism for justifying Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks and forcefully denying some of the terror group’s atrocities — including widespread reports of sexual violence. In one notable stream last year, Piker said “it doesn’t matter if rapes f***ing happened on Oct. 7,” while adding that “the Palestinian resistance is not perfect.” He has also described Orthodox Jews as “inbred” and compared Zionists to Nazis, among other slurs seen as antisemitic.
Elsewhere during the debate, Mamdani, an outspoken critic of Israel who was arrested in October 2023 during a ceasefire demonstration outside the Brooklyn home of then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), declined to confirm that he would not participate in protests if he is elected mayor. “The important thing is to lead from City Hall,” Mamdani said. “That’s what I’ll be doing.”
Mamdani had faced intense backlash before the debate for comments during a Fox News interview released on Wednesday in which he avoided directly answering a question about whether Hamas should disarm and relinquish its leadership role in Gaza. He clarified at the debate that Hamas, as well as “all parties,” “should lay down” their arms but did not comment on its future role in the conflict.
“I’m proud to be one of the first elected officials in the state who called for a ceasefire, and calling for a ceasefire means ceasing fire,” Mamdani said. “That means all parties have to cease fire and put down their weapons. And the reason that we call for that is not only for the end of the genocide, but also an unimpeded access of humanitarian aid.”
He added that “we also have to ensure that [the ceasefire] addresses the conditions that preceded this, conditions like occupation, like the siege and apartheid, and that is what I’m hopeful for.”
Mamdani, who has seen mixed results in his continued outreach to the Jewish community, also once again refused to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada” — even as he reiterated that it “evokes many painful memories” for Jewish voters and reiterated he will “discourage” its usage.
The self-proclaimed socialist union leader has accused Israel of committing genocide and said she would look to divest city funds from Israel
Campaign website
Katie Wilson
As progressives have gained traction in local races across the country, Katie Wilson, a self-described socialist now mounting a formidable bid for mayor of Seattle, has increasingly drawn comparisons to Zohran Mamdani, the far-left Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City whose primary upset in June stunned the national political establishment.
Like Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist and state assemblyman, Wilson, the co-founder and executive director of Seattle’s Transit Riders Union, took political observers by surprise when she handily led the August “jungle” primary with just over 50% of the vote — defeating the moderate incumbent mayor, Bruce Harrell, by a nearly 10-point margin.
Wilson, in her early 40s, is preparing to face Harrell once again in the Nov. 4 election, where analysts say she is now well-positioned to oust the first-term mayor. Harrell has struggled not only to land on a vision that resonates with voters but to effectively articulate an argument against his upstart challenger, who has focused on a populist message of affordability that Mamdani has also championed throughout his own campaign.
But while her record of commentary on Israel and the war in Gaza is far more limited than Mamdani, who has long been an outspoken critic of the Jewish state, many Jewish leaders in Seattle are expressing concern over Wilson’s statements about the conflict amid what they describe as a lack of outreach from her campaign with just five weeks until the election.
In a handful of recent remarks, Wilson has accused Israel of genocide in Gaza — a characterization that Jewish leaders and community activists have found troubling as voter sympathy for the Jewish state, especially in the progressive Seattle area, has sharply declined.
“I am strongly opposed to the genocide in Gaza,” Wilson said in a comment posted to social media in August. “As mayor of Seattle, my ability to end the violence is limited, but I will do everything I can to end the suffering of Palestinians and guarantee the safety of Muslims, Jews, and people of all faiths and backgrounds in Seattle.”
Meanwhile, Wilson has suggested that she is “open to divestment” if Seattle “has investments that are indirectly supporting Israel’s actions,” according to an email response to a person who asked about her stances on Israel that was posted to social media in July.
Elsewhere in the note, Wilson said that she was “familiar with the ‘end the deadly exchange’ efforts of a few years ago and think that’s something that could be done through executive action,” referring to a movement seeking to prohibit American police officers from training with Israeli law enforcement officials. The American Jewish Committee has accused the campaign of helping to fuel an antisemitic trope suggesting Israel is responsible for American police brutality.
Regina Sassoon Friedland, regional director of the American Jewish Committee’s Seattle office, echoed a range of Jewish community leaders in taking issue with Wilson’s rhetoric on Israel.
“While AJC does not endorse or oppose candidates, it should be noted that claims of genocide against Israel lack factual or legal foundation,” Friedland told Jewish Insider on Tuesday. “Not only are such accusations baseless, but they distort realities on the ground when no mention is made of Hamas, whose announced purpose is annihilating Israel.”
In addition to her comments, some Jewish community leaders say they are discouraged by Wilson’s relationships with anti-Israel activists including Kshama Sawant, a former far-left Seattle city councilmember who has faced accusations of stoking antisemitism. Wilson also claimed an endorsement from CAIR Action, a political advocacy group affiliated with the Council on American-Islamic Relations, whose executive director has drawn condemnation for praising Hamas.
A recently established political action committee called The Kids Table, which seeks to promote “pro-Jewish candidates for state and local office” in Washington state and is led by a group of Jewish millennial activists, claimed that Wilson has “allied herself with vitriolic anti-Jewish candidates” and “talked about focusing city resources on foreign affairs issues, rather than on local ones, including the urgent problem of Jewish safety and security in Seattle.”
“Time and time again we hear deep concern about Katie Wilson’s candidacy,” the group told JI of its conversations with the Jewish community, adding she did not respond to a “candidate questionnaire about antisemitism and extremism” that had been sent to her campaign and was filled out by Harrell.
Even as Wilson has only glancingly weighed in on Israel throughout the race, where strategists say it has not been a prominent issue for many voters, the broader organized Jewish community has otherwise observed a distinct absence of engagement from her campaign.
The Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, for one, has not heard from her, several members told JI.
Scott Prange, an at-large member of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Seattle, said he was “not personally aware that Wilson has made any outreach to the Jewish community in Seattle.”
“And at a time when, especially in Seattle, antisemitism runs rampant amongst the left in the wake of post-Oct. 7 rhetoric and propaganda,” he told JI on Tuesday, “she has only fanned the flames by echoing hollow narratives about Israeli genocide in Gaza and calling for divestment of any city funds invested in Israel.”
Jack Gottesman, president of Sephardic Bikur Holim Congregation, an Orthodox synagogue in Seattle that includes around 300 families, said he “would welcome the opportunity to meet with Katie Wilson, but to date I have not seen meaningful outreach from her or her campaign to the Jewish community.”
“Jews have been part of Seattle’s fabric for well over 100 years, and it is important that candidates engage respectfully with all communities,” he told JI this week. “Her description of the situation in Gaza as a genocide was a mischaracterization. These are complex issues that demand depth, not slogans. I hope she recognizes the weight of her words.”
Wilson’s campaign did not respond to numerous interview requests from JI over several weeks.
In contrast with Wilson, Harrell, who was elected in 2021, has maintained what Jewish leaders largely called a strong voice in support of Israel and against rising antisemitic violence. Nevet Basker, a co-chair of Washingtonians for a Brighter Future, a separate pro-Israel PAC that has endorsed Harrell, said that the local Jewish community “appreciates” his “clear opposition to antisemitism.”
“We recognize the immense challenges the mayor has faced” and “applaud his commitment to ensure that all Seattle residents and visitors are safe and welcome,” Basker told JI in a statement.
Rob Spitzer, the president of B’nai B’rith International and a vice chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, said Harrell “has reached out” and “is generally supported by the community,” while recalling “meetings with him and his police and security team about protecting the Jewish community and our institutions.”
The Kids Table, for its part, countered that Harrell “has failed to meet this moment of crisis for the Jewish community,” noting that “pro-Palestinian protestors blocked the interstate for six hours and weren’t cleared or charged, and ‘kill your local colonizer’ was spraypainted on statues at the mayor’s alma mater, with zero comment from his office.”
Still, the group told JI in a statement, “Wilson’s candidacy, alliances with anti-Jewish figures and organizations, and lack of engagement have many Seattle Jews very worried about the next four years.”
Harrell’s campaign also did not respond to requests from JI for an interview.
While he has sought to connect Wilson to the movement to defund the police, which she says is not her goal, Harrell has avoided commenting on her approach to Israel, underscoring the shifting political dynamics around views that until recently would likely have been seen as too extreme for the Democratic Party but have now become acceptable to many voters.
Despite concerns from Jewish community leaders, Israel “hasn’t been front and center” in the race as a “topic of discussion or debate,” Sandeep Kaushik, a political consultant in Seattle who is not involved in either campaign, told JI.
Kaushik attributed Wilson’s unexpected rise in part to what he called the “Mamdani effect” and said she is the “front-runner,” even as he expects “the general election war is about to start” as pro-Harrell outside spending flows into the race and attacks ramp up in the final weeks.
“I think the mayor is now fighting for his political life,” Kaushik said.
Individuals involved in the race told JI impediments remain to consolidating support behind Andrew Cuomo
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
New York City Mayoral Zohran Mamdani (L) and former Mayor Eric Adams attend the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony on September 11, 2025 in New York City.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ decision on Sunday to drop out of his race for reelection was met with a mix of tempered hope and continued resignation among political consultants and Jewish community leaders who have long been waiting for an opening to block Zohran Mamdani, the front-runner and Democratic nominee.
In choosing to suspend his campaign for a second term with just five weeks remaining until the Nov. 4 election, Adams, the scandal-scarred mayor who had been running as an independent, may not offer the escape hatch that many Mamdani critics have been hoping for.
Adams, a deeply unpopular mayor whose tenure in office had been marred by a series of damaging corruption scandals and accusations that he had become cozy with the Trump administration, will remain on the ballot. And Curtis Sliwa, the GOP nominee polling ahead of Adams, reiterated on Sunday that he will stay in the race, rejecting calls for him to step aside and help to clear the field for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo — who is also running as an independent after badly losing the June Democratic primary.
But some critics of Mamdani, a democratic socialist and Queens state assemblyman leading in the polls, suggested that the consolidated field could now move previously reluctant donors to invest in a late-stage effort to help bolster Cuomo — who had been casting the race as a two-man contest with Mamdani even before Adams ended his campaign.
“Sentiment among some major donors had been that unless the field started to narrow, they were going to keep their powder relatively dry,” Jake Dilemani, a Democratic strategist who was involved in Cuomo’s primary bid, told Jewish Insider. “With Adams out, that dynamic starts to change, pressure will mount on Sliwa to drop his bid, and dollars will follow.”
Hank Sheinkopf, a veteran Democratic strategist who is leading an anti-Mamdani super PAC called Protect the Protectors, said Cuomo “can win only if there are independent committees that are talking about” Mamdani’s far-left positions and “how they are dangerous to New York.”
“Failure to do that means Mamdani will win,” he told JI, while noting Cuomo’s “argument that he is more experienced isn’t working,” demonstrated by his negative voter ratings in polls.
Sheinkopf speculated that new donors could now be energized to open their checkbooks if they are convinced, as he believes, that a Cuomo victory will require outside groups, which have struggled to raise money even as they have begun to place ads in recent weeks, work on chipping away at Mamdani’s relatively favorable polling numbers.
“You can knock Mamdani to 30 or below,” Sheinkopf predicted. Recent surveys have shown Mamdani’s favorability ratings in the mid to high 40s.
Another political consultant who is involved in a separate anti-Mamdani super PAC, speaking on the condition of anonymity to address the current state of the race, said he is “hopeful that the donors who were sitting on the sidelines will now become more active,” but he had no details to share about any new movement on that front.
The consultant acknowledged that Sliwa’s choice to remain in the race, threatening to peel support from Cuomo, “is certainly an impediment, but hopefully not a major one,” suggesting that “Cuomo can get a lot of Sliwa’s vote.”
Chris Coffey, a Democratic consultant who helped to advise Cuomo’s primary campaign, said that the race had been “frozen” until Adams finally dropped out on Sunday. “Both donors and reporters spent three-plus weeks on whether Eric would drop out,” he told JI. “Now he has. It’s still going to be uphill for Cuomo but to have any shot, he needed Eric out and he’s out.”
“If donors and press now turn to Curtis, that won’t help Cuomo,” Coffey continued. “I’d expect to see national and local GOP push folks to Cuomo. That’s a double-edged sword but again, he needs it to have a meaningful shot.”
Eric Levine, a top GOP fundraiser who had been backing Adams’ bid, said that he is now supporting Cuomo and believes that Sliwa “needs to get out” if the former governor has any chance of prevailing in the race.
While he did not anticipate that Sliwa — whose campaign said in a statement on Sunday that he “is the only candidate who can defeat Mamdani” — will likely step aside, Levine called on GOP leadership in New York to urge him to drop out and help clear the field for Cuomo.
“He was a terrible governor, he’s an even worse person and will be a horrible mayor,” Levine said of Cuomo. “But compared to Mamdani,” the choice is easy, he told JI, citing the nominee’s hostile stances toward Israel that have fueled concern among many Jewish community leaders.
“The city is heading for a world of hurt, and any Republican who thinks that it’s a good idea to have Mamdani be the new face of the Democratic Party is too cynical for me,” Levine, a Republican Jewish Coalition board member, said on Sunday.
Cuomo, for his part, praised the mayor’s decision to ultimately drop out of the race, as he had called on Adams to do. “The choice Eric Adams made today was not an easy one, but I believe he is sincere in putting the well-being of New York City ahead of personal ambition,” the former governor said in a statement on Sunday. “We face destructive extremist forces that would devastate our city through incompetence or ignorance, but it is not too late to stop them.”
But while Cuomo’s campaign hopes to gain new backing from Black and Orthodox Jewish voters who were behind Adams, the mayor himself did not offer an endorsement, even if his announcement left open the possibility he could end up taking a side in the race. Adams otherwise warned, in a veiled swipe at Mamdani, that “insidious forces” are now seeking to “advance divisive agendas.”
“Major change is welcome and necessary,” Adams said in his announcement posted to social media on Sunday. “But beware of those who claim the answer is to destroy the very system we built together over generations.”
Leon Goldbenberg, an Orthodox leader in Brooklyn who is an executive board member of the Flatbush Jewish Community Coalition and had been backing Adams, said that he was encouraged by the mayor’s choice to suspend his campaign. “At this point, it’s more of a horse race,” he told JI, predicting Cuomo will see solid support in the Orthodox community as it seeks to register new voters ahead of the election.
“I think that you are going to see a tremendous turnout in the Orthodox community,” Goldenberg said. “Whether it makes a difference or not, I can’t tell you.”
Some activists in the broader organized Jewish community were less confident that the campaign shake-up on Sunday would meaningfully influence the outcome of a race that Mamdani has continued to dominate.
One Jewish leader, speaking on the condition of anonymity to address private discussions, said it was “too soon yet” to conclude if a critical mass of new donors would now be motivated to step up to help oppose Mamdani. “But new conversations are happening.”
Another Jewish leader who fears a Mamdani win, and also spoke on the condition of anonymity, was far less sanguine about Adams’ decision. “It doesn’t make a difference,” the Jewish leader told JI, while referring to such remaining obstacles as Sliwa and the mayor’s name still appearing on voters’ ballots.
A credible effort to beat Mamdani “would require about $10 to $15 million to make a difference,” the Jewish leader estimated. “I just don’t know that we have that chance.”
With that in mind, “the best thing that I’m hoping for is that we can keep him under 50%,” the Jewish leader said of Mamdani, “to make him govern from a minority position and not a mandated position.”
Kolot Chayeinu has drawn criticism for its anti-Israel Hebrew school curriculum, and one of its rabbis meeting with the Iranian president last year
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
New York City Zohran Mamdani speaks on Sept. 15, 2025 in New York City.
Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, attended his first Rosh Hashanah service on Monday night at a Brooklyn synagogue well-known for its anti-Zionist activism.
The visit to Kolot Chayeinu, a nondenominational synagogue in Park Slope that has drawn controversy over its anti-Zionist orientation, comes as Mamdani is seeking to engage in increased outreach to Jewish voters ahead of the November election.
But the venue choice also underscores his polarizing position in the broader Jewish community — where many Jewish leaders have continued to raise alarms over his anti-Israel policies and refusal to condemn calls to “globalize the intifada,” among other issues.
Mamdani, an outspoken critic of Israel who has identified as anti-Zionist, was warmly received at the Monday service, where he sat in the front row in a mask and a yarmulke beside Brad Lander, the city comptroller who is a member of Kolot Chayeinu.
Lander, a close ally of Mamdani, recently described the congregation, which was one of the first to call for an early ceasefire in October 2023, as a meeting point for anti-Zionist Jews and progressive Zionists like himself.
The synagogue, which maintains an “open tent” policy on Israel and Palestine, has faced criticism for promoting anti-Israel views in its Hebrew school curriculum in the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks.
In one particularly controversial lesson, students were instructed to write a letter of apology rebuking their Jewish “ancestors” for taking Palestinian land, fueling concerns among parents who objected to the politicized assignment.
A rabbi at Kolot Chayeinu, Abby Stein, who is a member of the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace, also drew scrutiny for attending a meeting in New York City last year with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, days before the Islamic Republic launched a missile attack against Israel.
Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist and assemblyman from Queens, did not deliver remarks at the Monday evening service. During his sermon, the rabbi accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, a claim that Mamdani has frequently made.
Mamdani is now expected to appear at other Jewish institutions during the High Holidays, including a mainstream congregation on Manhattan’s Upper West Side — where he could face a less welcoming audience skeptical of his hostile views toward Israel.
A spokesperson for Mamdani did not respond to a request for comment about his planned outreach to the Jewish community.
The Antisemitism Awareness Act has been stalled in Congress despite its bipartisan support
Anna MoneymAaker/Getty Images/Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Reps. Mike Lawler and Josh Gottheimer
Citing New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s stated plans to revoke the city’s use of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, Reps. Mike Lawler (R-NY) and Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) called on Thursday for the House to pass the long-stalled Antisemitism Awareness Act.
The bill has seen no movement in the current congressional session in the House and faces significant hurdles in the Senate after a series of poison-pill amendments were added to the legislation. But Jewish groups are continuing to push for the bill’s passage, a top priority issue since Oct. 7, including in lobbying efforts this week.
“Zohran Mamdani’s reckless attempt to roll back New York City’s adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism is shameful, dangerous, and completely disgusting,” Lawler and Gottheimer said in a joint statement.
They went on to condemn as antisemitic the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, which Mamdani supports, “efforts to delegitimize Israel’s right to exist” and Mamdani’s refusal to “outright condemn the violent call to ‘globalize the intifada.’”
“Given the sharp spike in antisemitic violence, families across the Tri-State area should be alarmed. Leaders cannot equivocate when it comes to standing against antisemitism and the incitement of violence against Jews,” Lawler and Gottheimer said. “This is exactly why Congress must pass our bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act.”
The two vowed to “continue working together, across party lines, to make sure our communities are safe, our values are clear, and antisemitism is confronted head-on.”
Plus, NY Jewish leaders fearful of Mamdani mayoralty
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, attends a news conference about the Israel-Hamas war, and pressure to reduce civilian casualties, Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, in Washington.
Good Thursday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we talk to Jewish leaders who are reacting with fear and resignation to the increasing likelihood that Zohran Mamdani will be the next mayor of New York City, and cover remarks made by Sen. Elissa Slotkin about rising left-wing antisemitism. We report on House Speaker Mike Johnson’s efforts to push back on GOP isolationists and cover Education Secretary Linda McMahon’s comments about the Trump administration’s settlements with universities over campus antisemitism. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Richard Goldberg, Mimi Kravetz and Ken Marcus.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by Jewish Insider Israel Editor Tamara Zieve and U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions is holding a hearing this morning on the state of K-12 education.
- The Atlantic Festival begins in New York City today, opening with a session including former Vice President Mike Pence and former National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster.
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy is holding a policy forum today on “Recognizing ‘Palestine’: Rationale, Expectations, Implications” with speakers Rob Satloff, the Washington Institute’s executive director, and Tal Becker, former legal advisor to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
- The American Jewish Historical Society is hosting an interview with media executive Barry Diller about his recent memoir, Who Knew.
- Tonight, the Israeli Embassy will host its Rosh Hashanah reception in Washington.
- United Hatzalah will hold its 2025 Los Angeles gala with honorary guest Gal Gadot. Israeli Eurovision performer Yuval Raphael will receive United Hatzalah’s Hero Award and American venture capitalist Shaun Maguire will receive its Am Israel award.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S LAHAV HARKOV
In the aftermath of Israel’s strike aimed at Hamas leaders in Qatar, questions have emerged about how much the U.S. knew, the extent of President Donald Trump’s frustration with Israel’s actions and what it means for the U.S.-Israel relationship.
But another important question is whether the strike marks a turning point for Qatar — and whether the Gulf nation may now be considering a shift in its own role and behavior.
The fact that the Trump administration has not dwelled on the attack — even sending Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Israel for a warm visit days after the strike — may give Doha pause. While Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the strike “did not advance Israel or America’s goals,” in the next breath, she said that “eliminating Hamas, who have profited off the misery of those living in Gaza, is a worthy goal.” That goes against the Qataris’ preferred narrative, that the U.S. wants it to host terrorists because they’re the only conduit to Hamas, the Taliban and others.
With that in mind, Qatar could reconsider the business of harboring terrorists, because it has become risky and could impact its relations with Western companies and institutions. Though the UAE was not in the terror-supporting business and has long opposed the Muslim Brotherhood, it didn’t prevent people like Hamas terrorist Mahmoud al-Mabhouh from visiting the UAE until the Mossad killed him in Dubai in 2010. The Emiratis publicly railed against Israel and the then-quiet relations between the countries were set back, but the UAE cracked down and banned such individuals associated with terror groups from entering their country.
However, Qatar does not seem to be taking recent events as a signal to change. Doha roundly condemned Israel, threatened to stop mediating hostage talks and convened an Arab summit to condemn Israel further. Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad appeared on Al Jazeera yesterday, with the chyron stating that he was in Doha, and the wife of senior Hamas official Khalil al-Haya was spotted visiting the grave of her son, killed in the strike, with Qatari security. On Tuesday, the Qatari Defense Minister hosted his Taliban counterpart.
And while Qatar could respond to the strike by turning away from America, it does not seem to have done that, either. Doha publicly denied reports that they were reconsidering its relationship with Washington. After its initial statement, Qatar said it would continue mediating Gaza hostage and ceasefire talks, and shifted to blaming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, rather than Israel, broadly. Doha softened its language in Arabic to describe the hostages, moving from “prisoners” to “captives,” according to Ariel Admoni, a Qatar expert at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS).
BITING THE BULLET
New York Jewish leaders reckon with a potential Mamdani win
As Jewish leaders reckon with the increasing likelihood that Zohran Mamdani will be the next mayor of New York City, many who have voiced anxiety over his avowedly anti-Israel policies are reacting with a mix of fear and resignation. Their concerns have been mounting as Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, has continued to hold a comfortable lead in the race, where polling shows him handily prevailing over the divided field, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports. The 33-year-old democratic socialist and Queens state assemblyman has recently claimed endorsements from prominent party leaders including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who clarified she does not agree with him on Israel issues but said she appreciated his commitment to combating antisemitism as well as his efforts to meet with Jewish community members to address “their concerns directly.”
Community concerns: But multiple Jewish leaders said in interviews with JI on Wednesday that they remain deeply skeptical of his campaign’s outreach and pledges to confront rising antisemitism, citing a string of recent statements in which he has doubled down on his hostile approach to Israel — as well as an ongoing refusal to explicitly denounce extreme rhetoric espoused by his allies on the far left. “I believe that he will genuinely work to drive a wedge between Jews and their neighbors as long as he serves in public office,” Sara Forman, executive director of New York Solidarity Network, a group that supports pro-Israel Democratic candidates for state and local office, told JI. “To this date,” she said of Mamdani, “his actions certainly have given us no indication they match his words.”
calling it out
Sen. Slotkin sounds alarm on left-wing antisemitism at Jewish security briefing
Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), speaking on Wednesday to a gathering of Jewish activists on Capitol Hill, highlighted concerns about rising left-wing antisemitism and the ways that antisemitic narratives are being spread to and by college students, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
What she said: “We’re used to the right-wing side. What is new and what I think has so many in the Jewish community on our heels is that new left-wing antisemitism and how to approach it,” Slotkin said at a pre-High Holidays security briefing organized by several Jewish communal organizations. “How do we counteract it? How do we protect against it? How do we educate? And certainly, we’re watching, on many college campuses, a lot of young people who actually maybe didn’t grow up with the Jewish community at all, get to campus and maybe repeat what they’re hearing, sometimes not even understanding or knowing,” she continued. “I would just say that one of our responsibilities as Jewish leaders and Jewish activists is to try and really parse through how to deal with antisemitism on the left, since antisemitism on the right isn’t good, but it’s more of a well-known threat.”
HOLDING THE LINE
Johnson discusses efforts to push back on GOP isolationists with pro-Israel leaders
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) spoke about his efforts to hold the line against the isolationist wing of the Republican Party in a private meeting with pro-Israel leaders on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, several individuals who attended the meeting told Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod. Johnson, who described himself to the group as a “Reagan Republican” focused on “peace through strength,” acknowledged that isolationism is rising in the Republican Party, and that the party is likely bound for a major debate on the issue after President Donald Trump leaves office.
Preventative action: Johnson also told the group that, in his candidate recruiting efforts, he’s working to filter out isolationists to prevent that wing of the party from growing larger in the House, four people who attended the meeting said. “The speaker was very, very direct about the U.S. role with Israel and in the world and understands that there are voices that don’t agree in both parties, on both extremes, and urges us all to be involved in fighting back against those extremes,” Eric Fingerhut, the CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, told JI.
education cooperation
Education Secretary McMahon says administration not looking for prolonged legal battle with Harvard
Education Secretary Linda McMahon said on Wednesday that the Trump administration’s goal is not to engage in a prolonged legal battle with Harvard University and expressed hope that the federal government would be able to reach a settlement that delivers meaningful reforms to the elite campus. McMahon made the comments while appearing at the Federalist Society and the Defense of Freedom Institute’s annual Education Law & Policy Conference on Wednesday morning, after being asked during a moderated conversation with Washington Examiner politics editor Marisa Schultz where negotiations between Harvard and the administration stand, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
McMahon’s mission: “I’m certainly hopeful on the settlement. I have spoken to Alan Garber, their very good president, at the very beginning of this. I haven’t spoken to him since, but I do think that with the idea that Harvard has already started to take certain measures to change what they were doing, I certainly hope that there will be an agreement,” McMahon said. “It’s not our goal to have to go to court to make people abide by the law, to make universities abide by the law.” Asked by Schultz about the ongoing negotiations with the University of California, Los Angeles and other schools, and how the settlements fit into the Trump administration’s “big picture mission for elite universities and colleges in America,” McMahon said that their “goal is really not to be punitive necessarily, but to have universities, I think, return to what we all believe that universities started out to be.”
Backing McMahon: Ken Marcus, the founder of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, said on Wednesday that he had faith in McMahon to ensure that any settlements the Trump administration were to make with Harvard University or other schools would ensure concrete reforms to address campus antisemitism.
OU Action: Members of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center met with McMahon yesterday to discuss federal efforts to counter antisemitism and new legislation promoting school choice, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
EXPLAINING SNAPBACK
What to expect from snapback sanctions on Iran
The Sept. 27 deadline to snap back United Nations sanctions on Iran’s nuclear and other weapons programs is rapidly approaching. The E3 — as France, Germany and the U.K. are known — announced last month that they planned to trigger the snapback sanctions mechanism, meaning the likely return of all U.N. sanctions that had been “sunsetted” per the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. In an interview with Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov on an episode of the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy’s “Mideast Horizons” podcast, Richard Goldberg, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ senior advisor, explained the snapback procedure and how the sanctions are expected to damage Iran’s economy. Goldberg recently finished a stint as the Trump administration’s National Energy Dominance Council’s senior counselor and was the director for countering Iranian weapons of mass destruction in the first Trump administration.
Now or never: Goldberg said it is important not to stop the snapback process, even if Iran suddenly agrees to cooperate. “You don’t stop the snapback, which goes away in just a few weeks,” he said. “You cannot trigger this again after October; it’s done. Iran just wins all these strategic gains forever. … You have to complete the snapback because you don’t get another chance at it.” The impact of snapback would be significant on several fronts. “On a strategic level, they will no longer have any claim of legitimacy to transfer weapons to Russia,” Goldberg said. “Technically, the Russians today will tell you that it is fully legal under the Security Council, which is true. … That will be done after the snapback is completed.”
survey says
Jewish ‘surge’ post-Oct. 7 slowing for marginalized groups
In the aftermath of the deadly Oct. 7 attacks two years ago, many American Jews were pulled off the sidelines and got much more involved in Jewish life — a trend, dubbed “the surge,” that has continued into a second year, according to a survey released this spring. But a further breakdown of that survey data, shared this week by the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), shows that the impact of “the surge” is waning more quickly among Jews from minority populations, including LGBTQ Jews, Jews of color, Jews with disabilities and financially vulnerable Jews, than it is among the broader Jewish community, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Yearly comparison: The survey found that 31% of Jewish respondents said this year that they are engaging more with the Jewish community now than before Oct. 7, down from 43% last year — still significant post-Oct. 7 growth, but slightly down from the immediate aftermath. But among historically marginalized populations, that decrease was even more pronounced. “We’re sad and disheartened to see that these marginalized groups are engaging so much less than they were at this time last year,” JFNA’s chief impact and growth officer, Mimi Kravetz, told JI on Wednesday. “It’s still higher than baseline. There’s still people showing up more. But there has been a more significant drop among these most marginalized groups.”
Worthy Reads
The Ties That Bind: The Wall Street Journal examines why the strong relationship between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been resilient. “Trump, meanwhile, doesn’t want a public break with Netanyahu. He is proud of his close ties to Netanyahu and support for Israel, U.S. officials said. He often boasts about the Abraham Accords brokered during his first term, and continues to push for renewed ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia, a grand diplomatic prize he openly covets. Netanyahu also finds ways to ingratiate himself with Trump’s inner circle and flatter the president directly. On Saturday, Netanyahu, alongside U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, participated in a cornerstone-laying ceremony to name a promenade in the beachside city of Bat Yam after Trump. In effect, Netanyahu has shaped a relationship where he can temporarily risk Trump’s ire, knowing it won’t last.” [WSJ]
Arrest Warning: Former Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz argues in The Wall Street Journal against New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s pledge to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he travels to the city. “It’s easy to mock Zohran Mamdani’s pledge that he will order the New York City Police Department to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu if the Israeli prime minister visits the city while Mr. Mamdani is mayor. Does he expect the NYPD to overcome Mr. Netanyahu’s Shin Bet and Secret Service bodyguards? Or will a New York City Criminal Court judge issue a warrant and wait for the prime minister to turn himself in? Has Mr. Mamdani even heard of diplomatic immunity? … Should a Mayor Mamdani attempt such a stunt, I would happily represent the prime minister in a federal lawsuit, which would be the easiest win of my career. … New Yorkers deserve leaders who focus on the city’s and state’s real challenges, not on grandstanding gestures that flirt with illegality and embarrass this great city on the world stage.” [WSJ]
The Charlie Kirk I Knew: In The Free Press, Harvard Law School graduate Adam Sharf recalls how interactions with Charlie Kirk as an undergraduate influenced him to become Orthodox. “He never tried to convert me. What he said instead changed my life: ‘It’s important that you be Jewish.’ … He made a 19-year-old take first principles seriously: why we are here and what we are here for. I began attending Shabbat dinners, meeting weekly with my rabbi to try to understand the covenant Charlie told me about.” [FreePress]
Word on the Street
The Israeli Ministry of Defense announced that it has completed the development of the Iron Beam laser missile interception system, which will be operational by the end of the year…
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delayed his announcement to recognize a Palestinian state until this weekend, after President Donald Trump has departed from his state visit to London…
Former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, backed by Trump, has proposed creating a “Gaza International Transitional Authority” to govern Gaza postwar, with the goal of replacing Hamas and eventually handing control to a reformed Palestinian Authority, The Times of Israel reports…
An immigration judge in Louisiana ruled that anti-Israel protest leader Mahmoud Khalil must be deported to Syria or Algeria for omitting details from his green card application, despite another court ruling in New Jersey blocking his deportation. Khalil’s lawyers said they intend to appeal the decision but do not expect the appeal to be successful…
Trump told aides that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “is f***ing me,” officials told The Wall Street Journal, after Israel attempted to strike Hamas leaders in Doha, Qatar, as Trump reportedly grows more frustrated with the Israeli prime minister…
The State Department designated four Iran-aligned militias as Foreign Terrorist Organizations on Wednesday…
Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer reportedly met with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff last night in London in a bid to revive ceasefire and hostage-release efforts…
National Students for Justice in Palestine asked members on Wednesday to send letters to a judge in New York asking for a lenient sentence for Tarek Bazrouk, who pleaded guilty in June to attacking three Jews for their Jewish or Israeli identity…
In separate statements, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Becca Balint (D-VT) on Wednesday accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, the first Jewish lawmakers to do so…
House lawmakers voted down a Republican resolution to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) over a social media video she reposted that called Charlie Kirk a “reprehensible human being” and criticized the right’s reaction to his killing…
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) became the latest voice turning Charlie Kirk’s killing into a referendum on his views on Israel and Judaism with a series of social media posts on Wednesday. “Do not allow a foreign country, foreign agents, and another religion [to] tell you about Charlie Kirk. And I hope a foreign country and foreign agents and another religion does not take over Christian Patriotic Turning Point USA,” she wrote, indirectly referring to Israel and Jews…
Disney-owned ABC is taking Jimmy Kimmel’s late night talk show off air after he said during his Monday show, “The MAGA Gang (is) desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.” …
In an excerpt from former Vice President Kamala Harris’ forthcoming book, 107 Days, she admits she would have preferred to choose former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigeig as her running mate in the 2024 election, but “we were already asking a lot of America: to accept a woman, a Black woman, a Black woman married to a Jewish man”…
The Gothamist reports on growing tensions between Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani and City Comptroller Brad Lander, just months after they cross-endorsed each other in the primary race. Lander is reportedly insinuating behind closed doors that he’ll be appointed first deputy mayor, the mayor’s right hand, should Mamdani win the election, while Mamdani has told him to back off and insists no personnel decisions have been made…
Pro-Israel philanthropist Ronald Lauder injected $750,000 to the Fix the City PAC, which is backing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in his bid to defeat Mamdani as an independent, despite Cuomo’s recent turn away from his full-throated support of Israel’s war in Gaza…
Top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas announced plans today for the EU to impose tariffs on Israel and sanction Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, following on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s call last week for the EU to suspend free trade measures with Israel…
The Israeli Ministry of Culture announced it’s cutting state funding for the Ophir Awards, known as the “Israeli Oscars,” after a film about a Palestinian boy from Ramallah seeing the ocean in Tel Aviv won five awards at the show on Tuesday, including 2025 Best Picture. The movie, “The Sea,” is now slated to represent Israel at the Oscars…
Bloomberg profiles Rachel Accurso, also known as Ms. Rachel, a popular children’s content creator and outspoken critic of Israel’s war in Gaza, which she regularly refers to as genocide……
The New York Times speaks to Jewish and Muslim experts on whether followers of the religion can accept pig heart transplants…
Restaurateurs Emily and Alon Shaya, along with Tulane University Professor Mara Force, recreated dishes from a recipe book of the Fenves family, saved as they were taken to Auschwitz in 1944, in a project dubbed “Rescued Recipes”…
Pic of the Day
The Michael Levin Base for lone soldiers marked its annual gala on Tuesday evening at the Jerusalem Theater at which U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee gave the keynote address. Michael Dickson, executive director of StandWithUs Israel (left), moderated a panel on the rise of global antisemitism, with panelists (from left to right) Fleur Hassan-Nahoum, Israel’s special envoy for trade and innovation and honorary board member of The Michael Levin Base; Adir Schwarz, deputy mayor of Jerusalem; and Matti Friedman, author and journalist.
Birthdays
Winner of three Grammy Awards for music videos, he is also a filmmaker and photographer, Mark Lee Romanek turns 66…
Marina Del Rey, Calif., resident, Kathy Levinson Wolf… Retired Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon, he served as U.S. secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Trump 45 administration, Dr. Ben Carson turns 74… Business executive who served as co-CEO of SAP and CEO of Hewlett-Packard, Léo Apotheker turns 72… Harvard professor of psychology, specializing in visual cognition and psycholinguistics, Steven Pinker turns 71… U.S. senator (R-AL), he had a career prior to politics as a collegiate football coach, Tommy Tuberville turns 71… Former CEO of The Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee, Howard Tevlowitz… Former executive director of the Los Angeles Westside Jewish Community Center, Brian Greene… Attorney general of Israel, Gali Baharav-Miara turns 66… Professor of economics at MIT and a 2021 Nobel Prize laureate in economics, Joshua Angrist turns 65… One of the earliest Israeli tech entrepreneurs, he is best known for starting Aladdin Knowledge Systems in 1985, Yanki Margalit turns 63… Founder and executive chairman of Delek US, Ezra Uzi Yemin turns 57… Classical pianist, Simone Dinnerstein turns 53… Chief policy officer at the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, Karen Paikin Barall… NBC and MSNBC legal analyst, she was a 2021 candidate for Manhattan district attorney, Tali Farhadian Weinstein turns 50… Founding partner of Shore Capital Partners, he is a part-owner of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns and the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury along with his brother Mat Ishbia, Justin Ryan Ishbia turns 48… Comedian, actor, producer and screenwriter, Billy Eichner turns 47… Rome bureau chief of The New York Times, covering Italy and the Vatican, Jason Horowitz… Director of operations at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, Robin Anderson… Co-host of Bloomberg Surveillance every morning on Bloomberg Television and Bloomberg Radio, Lisa Abramowicz turns 46… Author and CNN analyst, he was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, Bakari Sellers turns 41… Founder of the Jerusalem Journal, Avi Mayer… Professional poker player whose total career live tournament winnings exceed $24.5 million, Nick Schulman turns 41… Baseball broadcaster for the Washington Nationals, Dan Kolko… Television and film actress, Shoshana Bush turns 37… Senior director at TLG Communications – the Levinson Group, Zak Sawyer…
Several leaders in the community told JI they continue to have concerns about his record, while others are quietly engaging
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
New York City Zohran Mamdani speaks on Sept. 15, 2025 in New York City.
As Jewish leaders reckon with the increasing likelihood that Zohran Mamdani will be the next mayor of New York City, many who have voiced anxiety over his avowedly anti-Israel policies are reacting with a mix of fear and resignation.
Their concerns have been mounting as Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, has continued to hold a comfortable lead in the race, where polling shows him handily prevailing over the divided field. The 33-year-old democratic socialist and Queens state assemblyman has recently claimed endorsements from prominent party leaders including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who clarified she does not agree with him on Israel issues but said she appreciated his commitment to combating antisemitism as well as his efforts to meet with Jewish community members to address “their concerns directly.”
But multiple Jewish leaders said in interviews with Jewish Insider on Wednesday that they remain deeply skeptical of his campaign’s outreach and pledges to confront rising antisemitism, citing a string of recent statements in which he has doubled down on his hostile approach to Israel — as well as an ongoing refusal to explicitly denounce extreme rhetoric espoused by his allies on the far left.
While Mamdani has, since winning the primary in June, walked back some of his polarizing views on key issues such as policing, he has otherwise made an exception for Israel, of which he has long been a fierce critic. In a series of interviews published last week, for instance, he reiterated a campaign vow to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if elected, even as legal experts cautioned such a move could violate federal law.
A vocal supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel — which some critics deem antisemitic — he said he would end a program established by Mayor Eric Adams, who is now running as an independent, to foster business partnerships between companies in Israel and New York City. He also said he would stop relying on the working definition of antisemitism promoted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance — which labels some criticism of Israel as antisemitic — as was adopted by Adams in a recent executive order.
And although he has said he would discourage activists from invoking the slogan “globalize the intifada,” which he himself has not used publicly, Jewish leaders have noted that Mamdani has still not condemned the phrase itself, fueling suspicion that he tacitly approves of the chant critics interpret as a call to antisemitic violence.
“I believe that he will genuinely work to drive a wedge between Jews and their neighbors as long as he serves in public office,” Sara Forman, executive director of New York Solidarity Network, a group that supports pro-Israel Democratic candidates for state and local office, told JI. “To this date,” she said of Mamdani, “his actions certainly have given us no indication they match his words.”
Andres Spokoiny, who leads the Jewish Funders Network but emphasized that he was speaking only in his personal capacity, said that he was “extremely concerned and extremely fearful” about what he regards as a likely Mamdani mayoralty. “His views make the majority of Jews unsafe and unwelcome,” he told JI.
More broadly, Spokoiny said his worries had less to do with particular policies than what he called “the breaking of a taboo” around anti-Zionist sentiment that did not ultimately serve as an “impediment” to Mamdani’s rise, even in a place that is home to the largest Jewish community of any city in the world. “That fact that it is in New York is highly symbolic,” he said. “It shows that our society doesn’t have the antibodies to reject somebody with a very divisive message.”
He also voiced regret about a lack of unity in the organized Jewish community to collectively oppose Mamdani and coalesce behind one candidate in the race, which includes former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, running on an independent line, and Curtis Sliwa, the GOP nominee. “I think it asks for a deep rethinking in the Jewish community about how we face this challenge,” he said.
While Mamdani has won backing from some Jewish elected officials in New York, notably Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), others have continued to keep the nominee at a safe distance with just weeks until November. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has withheld an endorsement of Mamdani despite meeting privately with him, as has Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), who said last month he is waiting for the nominee to take “concrete steps” to address antisemitic hate crimes.
“Typically during a general election you’ll see candidates moderate their positions either in a dishonest attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and uncomfortable voters or in a genuine extension of the olive branch,” said Sam Berger, an Orthodox Democrat who represents an Assembly district in Queens. “Indeed, we’ve seen Zohran do this with the business world as well as with the NYPD.”
Simone Kanter, a spokesperson for Goldman, said on Wednesday that the congressman had “nothing new to add yet beyond what he’s already said” about Mamdani.
During his campaign, Mamdani has more actively aligned with groups on the far left including Jewish Voice for Peace, which is anti-Zionist, and Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, which hosted a recent gala at which the nominee was celebrated alongside Brad Lander, the Jewish comptroller with whom he cross-endorsed in the primary.
Even as Mamdani has engaged in outreach to the Jewish community to address concerns about his platform, among other issues, some Jewish leaders indicated they did not anticipate there would be any common ground on which to develop a relationship with a potential Mamdani administration.
“Typically during a general election you’ll see candidates moderate their positions either in a dishonest attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and uncomfortable voters or in a genuine extension of the olive branch,” said Sam Berger, an Orthodox Democrat who represents an Assembly district in Queens. “Indeed, we’ve seen Zohran do this with the business world as well as with the NYPD.”
By contrast, Berger argued of his colleague in the state legislature, Mamdani “hasn’t done the bare minimum with long-recognized Jewish institutions and leaders, instead relying on his support from the fringe of the fringe,” which he called “a major red flag.”
“Fixing potholes is typically apolitical,” he told JI, “but [when] the point of contention is the uplifting of baseless hatred against the Jewish people there is no common ground to be had.”
Kalman Yeger, an Orthodox assemblyman in Brooklyn who has been among Mamdani’s most outspoken critics, said the nominee’s “inability to get his brain around the notion that globalizing the intifada is a bad thing is terrifying.”
Simcha Eichenstein, a Democratic assemblyman from the Hasidic neighborhood of Borough Park in Brooklyn, was equally pessimistic about Mamdani.
“We can agree to disagree when it comes to policy matters, but as a visible Jew, I should be able to walk the streets of New York City safely, without fear of harassment,” he told JI on Wednesday.
“The inability and unwillingness of a candidate running to represent nearly a million Jews to denounce radical, extreme and antisemitic groups have many within the Jewish community wondering whether we have a future in New York at all,” Eichenstein added, citing as an example the radical pro-Palestinian group Within Our Lifetime, which has led at least one protest that was attended by Mamdani in 2021.
Kalman Yeger, an Orthodox assemblyman in Brooklyn who has been among Mamdani’s most outspoken critics, said the nominee’s “inability to get his brain around the notion that globalizing the intifada is a bad thing is terrifying.”
“His lunatic threat to arrest Netanyahu, when he is surely not stupid enough to believe he has that power, is a sign to the Jew haters that he stands with them,” Yeger added, claiming Mamdani “will, by his words, his actions and his inactions, cause continued increasing antisemitism” in New York City.
Mamdani has forcefully rejected accusations he has fomented antisemitism, vowing to increase funding to counter hate crimes by 800%. A spokesperson for his campaign did not return a request for comment from JI on Wednesday.
Daniel Rosenthal, vice president of government relations at UJA-Federation of New York, said his organization, a nonprofit forbidden from making political endorsements, “will strongly oppose any actions that alienate or marginalize Jews, including attempts to delegitimize Israel and support BDS. As always, we will work to ensure that the needs and concerns of Jewish New Yorkers are heard and addressed.”
Leon Goldenberg, a Brooklyn real estate executive who is an executive board member of the Flatbush Jewish Community Coalition, said his group had no interest in meeting with Mamdani — despite that he expects him to win the election. “What I really have a problem with is ‘globalize the intifada,’” he told JI on Wednesday. “You can’t condemn it. ‘Globalize the intifada’ is murder Jews on the streets.”
Goldenberg, who endorsed Adams in the general election but now believes he has no chance, said he was considering moving his permanent residence to Florida, where he keeps an apartment, if Mamdani prevails this fall. “He’s bright. I’m not going to take that away from him,” he said of the nominee. “But there’s very little that qualifies him to be mayor. If he had a different mindset, he’d be a great mayor.”
Despite their concerns about a potential Mamdani administration, few Jewish leaders were ready to speculate about working with him.
Daniel Rosenthal, vice president of government relations at UJA-Federation of New York, said his organization, a nonprofit forbidden from making political endorsements, “will strongly oppose any actions that alienate or marginalize Jews, including attempts to delegitimize Israel and support BDS.”
“As always, we will work to ensure that the needs and concerns of Jewish New Yorkers are heard and addressed,” Rosenthal told JI.
Other Jewish leaders pointed to ongoing voter registration efforts to boost Jewish turnout in the election. Josh Mehlman, who chairs the Flatbush Jewish Community Coalition, said his group had helped register more than 5,000 new Democratic voters in the Orthodox community in the last week alone. He did not respond when asked if he felt the increase in registrations would have any discernible impact on the outcome of the mayoral race.
Joel Rosenfeld, a representative of the influential Bobov Hasidic sect, also stressed his community “is fully focused on voter registration” in the lead-up to the election. Asked if he had anything else to add on the matter, Rosenfeld said, “A blessed new year,” ahead of the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah.
Still, there are signs that some Hasidic groups may now be cautiously — and quietly — warming up to a potential future Mamdani administration, even if it remains unlikely that any groups will endorse him, community members say.
“The Hasidim are a very practical bloc of voters, particularly the leadership,” said one Democratic consultant who has worked with the community. “Results matter more than ideology for them. If they think Mamdani will win, that’s where they’ll go.”
One Jewish community activist familiar with the matter said that “there are some groups secretly talking to” Mamdani “or his top people,” though he added it was “hard to believe any groups will openly endorse him, especially if Adams is still in the race.”
“The feeling is that like it or not he is most likely going to be the next mayor so we might as well begin a dialogue now rather than after the election,” he told JI.
Another activist familiar with a Satmar faction in Williamsburg, which represents the largest Hasidic voting bloc in New York City, said that Mamdani’s team is “aggressively courting” the community and has been in dialogue with leadership. “They want to work with us and we want to work with them,” the activist said in summarizing the dynamic, speaking on the condition of anonymity to address a sensitive situation.
“The Hasidim are a very practical bloc of voters, particularly the leadership,” said one Democratic consultant who has worked with the community. “Results matter more than ideology for them. If they think Mamdani will win, that’s where they’ll go.”
The swing-district New York Democrat said he won’t be supporting the far-left nominee for NYC mayor
Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY)
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) announced on Monday that he would not endorse Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City.
Suozzi, who represents a Long Island-based swing district on the outskirts of New York City that takes in a slice of Queens, said in an interview with ABC7 that, while he believes Mamdani is “very talented” and “very smart,” he feels the Democratic mayoral candidate’s policies would lead to increased costs for New Yorkers.
“Let me say very clearly: Mamdani is a very talented guy. He’s very smart, he’s very charismatic. … I have nothing against him personally, and I’m sure he’s a good person, but I completely disagree with his ideas. I disagree that we should raise taxes in New York City because people are leaving New York State and New York City as it is,” Suozzi said. “I’m all for making sure wealthy people pay their fair share at the federal level, so that wherever you go in the country you’re still going to have to pay, but not to encourage people to escape New York and go to Florida and go to Texas.”
“He wants to raise the minimum wage in New York. Well, I’m all for giving people higher wages. I like raising the minimum wage, but we need to do it at the national level, not just at the local level, and chase people out,” he added, noting that lawmakers “don’t want to chase people out of New York.”
Suozzi’s announcement comes one day after New York Gov. Kathy Hochul endorsedMamdani’s candidacy, emerging as one of his highest-profile backers.
In a subsequent post on X, Suozzi wrote that, “I will not be endorsing Mamdani. While I share his concern about the issue of affordability, I fundamentally disagree with his proposed solutions. Like the voters I represent, I believe socialism has consistently failed to deliver real, sustainable progress.”
He added that, “People have asked me about the Governor’s decision. I have not discussed this with the Governor and I am not in a position to give the Governor political advice considering the fact that when I ran against her she beat me soundly.”
Poll results continue to underscore how the splintered field is the biggest reason Mamdani is favored
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, attends an endorsement event from the union DC 37 on July 15, 2025, in New York City.
We’re well into September, and the state of play in the New York City mayoral race hasn’t changed much in the last couple months, despite the many eye-catching developments. But a new New York Times/Siena poll released this week showcases an in-depth picture of the city’s electorate — one that is clearly wary of Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani’s brand of socialism, even as he remains the clear favorite to become the next mayor.
As has always been the case, the divided field of Mamdani opponents is the far-left candidate’s biggest asset. Mamdani leads former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo by 15 points among registered voters, 41-26%, with all the candidates on the ballot. But in a head-to-head matchup, Cuomo pulls narrowly ahead, 46-45%.
The results continue to underscore how the splintered field is the biggest reason Mamdani is favored. Hardly any of the supporters of Mayor Eric Adams, running as an independent, or Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa would support Mamdani over Cuomo if their candidate dropped out. Indeed, among those not supporting Mamdani, over half (52%) said they would never support him for mayor — higher than any other candidate.
Working in Mamdani’s favor is the relatively respectable favorability rating he holds with New York City voters, especially in comparison to his rivals. Nearly half (49%) of respondents viewed Mamdani favorably, with only 35% viewing him unfavorably. That means that despite holding a record far to the left of past New York City mayors, many voters aren’t (yet) holding that against him. But there’s been no significant outside advertising effort against Mamdani, as you would typically expect in the run-up to a high-stakes contest.
Without any effort to remind voters about his far-left record, it’s no surprise that the fresh-faced political newcomer has a respectable image.
Cuomo, on the other hand, has an underwater favorability rating, with 42% viewing him favorably and 51% viewing him unfavorably — largely a result of the ethical scandal he faced that forced him to resign as governor.
But on the issues, it’s easy to see how Cuomo remains competitive in a one-on-one matchup. Crime is the top issue for New York City voters, with 26% naming it as the most important problem facing voters, slightly ahead of affordability at 24%. One of Mamdani’s biggest vulnerabilities is his long record of public comments supporting defunding the police and others critical of the NYPD.
One of the most notable findings is the decline in support for Israel in New York City, which has the largest Jewish population of any city in the world. By an 18-point margin, more New Yorkers now say they sympathize with the Palestinians than the Israelis — a finding that mirrors the growing partisanship in views towards the Jewish state. While white New Yorkers still favor Israel more (42-34%), Black (54-14%) and Hispanic voters (44-25%) overwhelmingly side with the Palestinians.
The swing-district Democrat is the first New York lawmaker outside of NYC to endorse the far-left mayoral nominee
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images
Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY) speaks during a Democratic Steering and Policy Committee hearing in the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2025 in Washington, DC
Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY), a swing-district Democrat representing parts of the Hudson Valley, announced his endorsement on Wednesday of Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City.
With the endorsement, Ryan becomes the first New York Democratic lawmaker outside of New York City to support the 33-year-old democratic socialist and Queens assemblyman.
“Public service is all about one thing: who do you fight for?” Ryan said in a social media post. “Zohran Mamdani fights for the PEOPLE.”
He also took a swipe at former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was soundly defeated by Mamdani in the June Democratic primary and is now running as an independent, calling him “a selfish POS who only fights for himself and other corrupt elites.”
“I know whose side I’m on,” Ryan added. “I’m with the people. I’m with Zohran.”
Mamdani, who is leading all polls in the divided race, returned the compliment in a social media post, saying Ryan “fights for the people, too: he’s stood up to the utilities ripping off his constituents and taken on monopoly power in Congress.”
He called it “a true honor to earn” Ryan’s support.
The two-term congressman, who had initially been reluctant to comment publicly on Mamdani’s candidacy, joins a handful of Democratic House colleagues in New York who have endorsed the nominee since the primary, including Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) and Adriano Espaillat (D-NY).
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-NY), whom Ryan has also praised, had endorsed Mamdani before the primary.
Even as pressure has recently been mounting for Democrats to get behind Mamdani as the November election nears, the party’s leaders — including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) — have all so far withheld endorsements.
Other holdouts include Reps. Dan Goldman (D-NY), Laura Gillen (D-NY) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY), who have raised concerns about Mamdani’s anti-Israel rhetoric.
Shortly after Ryan publicized his endorsement Wednesday, the House Republican campaign arm, which is targeting the congressman in the election next year, quickly pounced on the news, providing an early glimpse of how the GOP is seeking to link Mamdani’s far-left views to the broader Democratic brand.
“Pat Ryan made it official: His agenda and Zohran Mamdani’s are one and the same,” Maureen O’Toole, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said in a statement. “Together, they want to destroy New York City, making it unsafe and unaffordable for anyone to live, work or travel there. Let that sink in.”
A spokesperson for Ryan did not immediately return a request for comment.
She also doubled down on her condemnation of the slogan ‘globalize the intifada,’ over which she previously criticized mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) speaks at a news conference following a closed-door lunch meeting with Senate Democrats at the U.S. Capitol on October 31, 2023, in Washington, D.C.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) said in comments to Jewish leaders in New York City on Monday that anti-Israel protesters and, in some cases, fellow Democratic lawmakers are fueling antisemitism through the rhetoric and slogans they use, though she said that in many cases it is unintentional.
“Some of the rhetoric that comes out of various protests globally, various protests on college campuses is so damaging. When they say words like ‘river to the sea,’ whey they say words like ‘globalize the intifada,’ it means end Israel. It means destroy Jews,” Gillibrand said in a video from a roundtable with Jewish leaders in Borough Park shared by The Forward. “No matter what words they intend to be saying, that is the meaning of these simple phrases.”
Intifada, she continued, is “not a social movement. It’s terrorism, it’s destruction, it’s death.”
The New York senator has been particularly outspoken about the “intifada” rhetoric in the context of the New York City mayoral race. She previously offered strong condemnation of Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani for his refusal to condemn the “globalize the intifada” slogan and said that Jewish constituents were alarmed by his past comments.
Gillibrand also claimed Mamdani had made “references to global jihad,” but later apologized. She has not endorsed Mamdani’s mayoral bid.
The New York senator said she would work with Democratic colleagues “who sometimes, in my opinion, don’t use the right words or aren’t sensitive to the impact of those words” and explain to them how their comments are being received and contributing to antisemitism, and to rally them to support efforts to fight antisemitism.
“Nine times out of 10, they aren’t trying to be antisemitic or even trying to be anti-Israel. They just think they’re fighting for human rights,” Gillibrand continued, “but the words they often choose to use are very hurtful and harmful and are undermining.”
“It is very hurtful and it makes people feel like sometimes the members of our party do not have their back, and I think that’s very disruptive and damaging for our community, for our state, for our brothers and sisters,” Gillibrand said.
Gillibrand added that leaders and individuals have to “understand the impact of their words in all contexts,” including to the Muslim community and other faith and immigrant communities.
She also insisted that “nine out of 10 Democrats are pro-Israel and want peace in the Middle East,” though a majority of the Senate Democratic caucus recently voted in favor of blocking some arms sales to Israel.
Gillibrand argued that many of her colleagues’ concerns are driven by the political leadership in Israel, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and far-right members of the Israeli government.
“They don’t know how to articulate political disagreement, and sometimes it comes out as anti-Israel,” she said. “I try very hard to explain that your intentions are one thing, but how you’re received is another, and that’s where we get the disconnect.”
All told, Trump’s team is doing everything it can behind the scenes to eliminate the structural hurdles for a successful anti-Mamdani coalition
ANGELA WEISS,CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images
New York City mayoral candidate and democratic State Representative Zohran Mamdani (L) in New York City on April 16, 2025 and New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo (R) in New York City on April 13, 2025.
Just when it looked like far-left New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani was on track to become mayor, in part thanks to persistent divisions among his opposition, there are signs of a possible consolidation of the crowded field.
The New York Times reported that embattled Mayor Eric Adams is considering a job offer from the Trump administration — a position at the Department of Housing and Urban Development or an ambassadorship have been floated — that would entice him to withdraw from the race. The paper is also reporting that Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa has also been approached by Trump allies, but Sliwa has remained adamant that he is sticking in the race.
All told, Trump’s team is doing everything it can behind the scenes to eliminate the structural hurdles for a successful anti-Mamdani coalition, without publicly putting its finger on the scale for the leading Mamdani challenger, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. (It’s also notable that Trump, even though it would be in his political interest to use a Mamdani mayoralty as a battering ram against Democrats, is more concerned about the policy consequences of a socialist mayor in his hometown.)
A one-on-one Mamdani-Cuomo general election showdown is still far from a sure thing, but it’s worth noting that the matchup would be quite competitive, according to the available public polling. Even the pro-Mamdani pollster Adam Carlson found in July that Mamdani only led Cuomo by three points among registered voters in a head-to-head matchup, though the lead expanded to double digits when the most likely voters were polled.
An August poll conducted by Gotham Polling and Analytics for the AARP found Mamdani leading Cuomo 44-25% with all the candidates running, but also found that only 4% of respondents chose Mamdani as their second choice. (Adams was the second choice of 17% of respondents, while Cuomo was the second choice of 14%.)
The data suggest Mamdani would remain the front-runner, but the race would get a lot more competitive if the field narrowed. It would also put renewed pressure on business groups, Jewish organizations and moderate Democratic politicians who have refused to endorse Mamdani to decide whether to go all in for Cuomo — or maintain the same cautious posture that has defined the post-primary portion of the campaign.
For New York’s Democratic leaders who haven’t backed Mamdani, the partisan instinct to support the nominee of one’s party will probably prevent party leaders from siding with Cuomo. Indeed, for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), their hesitance to support Mamdani is driven by a realization that his brand of left-wing politics could taint the party’s candidates down the ballot — and it’s simply smart politics to keep their distance. It’s hard to see them going as far as backing Cuomo, even in a close race.
For New York Democrats in moderate districts, the calculation could get a lot more interesting. Swing-district moderates such as Reps. Tom Suozzi and Laura Gillen have been among the most outspoken critics against Mamdani, but aren’t endorsing an alternative. But if Cuomo looked like he was within striking distance of winning, there would be a lot of pressure for them to step off the sidelines.
The biggest test will be whether outside groups truly mount an all-out offensive against Mamdani if the race gets close. So far, many business leaders and other skeptical stakeholders have preferred to see if they can negotiate with the mayoral front-runner, in hopes of persuading him to moderate his past positions.
That looked like a smart play with the opposition hopelessly divided, and Mamdani on cruise control. But if Trump, of all people, manages to do the hard, dirty work of opening up an opportunity for Cuomo, will the Mamdani opposition take advantage of the new political dynamic?
The new initiative, backed by both governments, seeks to formalize innovation and investment partnerships across sectors like AI, cyber, and education
Haley Cohen
Anat Katz speaks at the NYC-Israel Economic Council launch at City Hall, August 6th, 2025
The New York City-Israel Economic Council, a new joint initiative between the two governments aimed at building economic ties, hosted its launch event on Wednesday at New York City Hall.
The council is a reflection of “the long relationship we’ve had with [New York City],” Anat Katz, the outgoing head of Israel’s economic mission in the U.S., told the crowd, which included representatives from American and Israeli companies including Google and Electra as well as Israeli venture capitalists. “This group is the embodiment of these strong ties,” Katz said. “It’s not political. It’s not Jewish. It’s a place for people to engage and get things done.”
New York City and Israel are the second and third largest technology hubs in the world, respectively, after Silicon Valley. While the relationship between the two has been strong for years, Katz said, the council was formed as a way to ensure “that systematically we are connected.” The council’s focus will include partnerships in economic development, emergency management, education and technology. In the fall, the council — which is currently seeking advisors — plans to coordinate delegations focused on AI and cybertechnology.
A declaration of intent to establish the council was initially signed in May by New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Israeli Economy Minister Nir Barkat. The mayor’s Office for International Affairs will lead the program.
The launch comes as Adams, who is running for reelection as an independent, has stepped up his outreach to the city’s Jewish voters as he faces off against Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee. Mamdani said in June that if elected mayor, he would discontinue the council.
Randy Mastro, New York City’s first deputy mayor, also addressed the audience at Wednesday’s event, which neither Adams nor Barkat attended.
A poll conducted by the Democratic polling firm GQR found Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, winning only 37% of Jewish voters
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, attends an endorsement event from the union DC 37 on July 15, 2025, in New York City.
A new poll of New York City Jewish voters commissioned by the pro-Israel New York Solidarity Network underscores the presence of a cohesive constituency opposed to Zohran Mamdani’s candidacy to become New York City mayor — but also illustrates some of the divisions preventing the city’s Jewish community from speaking with a loud, united voice.
The poll, conducted by the respected Democratic polling firm GQR, found Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, winning only 37% of Jewish voters, with 25% backing Mayor Eric Adams, 21% supporting former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and 14% preferring Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa. The results show that even though most Jewish voters identify as Democrats, a clear majority won’t support the Democratic nominee because of his record on issues of concern to the Jewish community — in a city where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans 6-to-1.
Adams performs particularly well among Orthodox Jews, winning 61% of their vote, while Cuomo leads among Conservative Jewish voters with 35% support. But among unaffiliated and Reform Jews, Mamdani leads with a near majority of the Jewish vote.
Asked if Jewish voters were pro-Israel, two-thirds (66%) responded in the affirmative, while 31% said they weren’t. That’s a slightly larger share of non-Zionist Jews than we’ve seen in national polling. Nearly two-thirds (63%) also said that the “globalize the intifada” rhetoric that Mamdani has defended is antisemitic, with just 27% disagreeing.
Just over half of Jewish voters in New York City (51%) believe Mamdani is antisemitic; 42% of respondents disagree.
The results illustrate the long-standing dynamic of the general election: Mamdani’s political standing is unusually weak as a Democratic nominee, but he continues to benefit from the divided field of opponents — and lack of a coherent strategy to go after the front-runner.
The fact that there isn’t a consensus Mamdani alternative within the Jewish community at this late stage demonstrates the hands-off approach to the race outside groups have taken, despite the very real fears many hold of what a Mamdani mayoralty would look like.
Liam Elkind, 26, leads a nonprofit organization to deliver food and medicine to vulnerable New Yorkers
Elkind for New York
Liam Elkind
Liam Elkind, a Jewish nonprofit leader in New York City, announced a primary challenge on Wednesday to Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), calling on the veteran lawmaker to step aside to make room for a younger generation of Democratic activists who have grown impatient with the party’s largely aging leadership.
“Today, I’m respectfully asking my congressman, Jerry Nadler, to consider retiring,” Elkind, 26, said of the 78-year-old incumbent in a campaign launch video. “I appreciate his 50 years in office. I grew up voting for him. But we need new leaders to meet this moment.”
Elkind, a Yale graduate and Rhodes Scholar who leads a nonprofit organization he launched during the COVID pandemic to deliver food and medicine to vulnerable New Yorkers, is part of a new wave of Democratic primary challengers raising frustrations with the party’s elderly membership in Washington and its efforts to oppose President Donald Trump as he enacts his sweeping agenda.
Rather than positioning himself to Nadler’s left, as some political observers had expected of a primary challenger, Elkind is instead framing his campaign as a referendum on what he criticized as the party’s strategic miscalculations in confronting Trump and the congressman’s enabling of a status quo sorely in need of a fresh generational shake-up.
“The same people are using the same old tactics, but they’re losing,” Elkind argues in his campaign video. “Our leaders need to answer the call now, and they aren’t.”
Nadler, who filed a statement of candidacy just this month to run for reelection next year, has confirmed he plans to seek another term — even as some strategists speculate he could still choose to retire.
The congressman’s decision to endorse Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, a day after the primary last month, was seen by some political observers as a sign that Nadler was seeking to forestall a primary challenge from the left — though his team has rejected such claims.
Rob Gottheim, a spokesperson for Nadler, refused to comment on the new challenge, accusing Jewish Insider of having published what he dismissed as a “slanted” article this month that cited backlash from Jewish community leaders over the congressman’s support for Mamdani — whose hostile positions on Israel have continued to raise alarms among Jewish New Yorkers.
Nadler, a co-chair of the Congressional Jewish Caucus who identifies as a Zionist and has vocally criticized the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, has said he does not agree with Mamdani’s more antagonistic views on Israel and antisemitism, including his refusal to condemn calls to “globalize the intifada” and support for boycotting the Jewish state, among other points of division. Earlier in the month, Nadler organized a meeting with Mamdani and local Jewish officials to address their concerns.
A majority of voters in Nadler’s heavily Jewish district, which includes Manhattan’s Upper West and East Sides, voted in the primary for Mamdani and Brad Lander, the progressive city comptroller.
For his part, Elkind, who was unavailable for an interview with JI on Wednesday, has no apparent record of commentary on Israel or the Middle East. He plans to emphasize a message of affordability and generational change, issues that helped propel Mamdani to a come-from-behind victory last month.
In an interview with CNN published on Wednesday, Elkind said he ranked Mamdani fifth on his ballot in the June primary, noting he did not agree with the nominee on some issues, including his position on the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which critics regard as a call to antisemitic violence.
Elkind, now completing a doctoral dissertation on campaign finance reform, was a summer intern for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in 2018, according to his LinkedIn page. The nonprofit he co-founded, called Invisible Hands, was acquired by Commonpoint Queens, a human services group, where he now serves on the board.
Elkind’s newly launched campaign is reportedly expected to draw significant financial backing from Reid Hoffman, the billionaire LinkedIn co-founder and a major Democratic donor who has previously supported moderate, pro-Israel candidates, fueling online criticism from the activist left.
Some Jewish residents of the district said that they were unfamiliar with Elkind but expressed interest in learning more about his approach to key issues of concern to the community.
“It’s not hard to honor Rep. Nadler’s decades of service while also recognizing that there is a new generation of existing and potential Democratic Party voters looking for more contemporary and relatable leaders,” Amanda Berman, CEO of the Zioness Action Fund, a progressive pro-Israel advocacy group, told JI. “Democrats have been struggling to connect with voters, and it’s healthy and exciting to see young, dynamic, pragmatic progressives stepping up to reclaim our politics from both MAGA extremism and dangerous leftist populism.”
Berman said she “looks forward to hearing more about Liam Elkind and his commitment to our twin values: unabashed progressivism and unapologetic Zionism.”
Avi Lichtschein, a Jewish resident of the Upper West Side, accused Nadler of “hypocrisy” for staunchly opposing the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel — which he has described as a form of “pernicious antisemitism” — while backing Mamdani, “a vocal BDS supporter.”
“So while I may not know much about Liam Elkind, I’m certain he’ll be better than Nadler,” Lichtschein told JI.
Despite a desire for new representation among some constituents, strategists say that Elkind, a first-time candidate largely unknown to voters in the district, is facing an uphill battle as he seeks to go up against Nadler, the widely respected dean of New York City’s congressional delegation.
The congressman, who has served in the House since 1992, easily fended off a handful of younger challengers in 2020, claiming nearly 70% of the vote. In 2022, he defeated former Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) in a bitterly contested intraparty fight in which the two Democratic colleagues chose to compete for a redrawn district that merged their seats.
While Elkind is the first challenger of the cycle to take on Nadler, he may not have the opposing field entirely to himself as others weigh bids of their own. Whitney Tilson, a former hedge fund executive who ran a failed campaign for New York City mayor as a moderate Democrat, has been mulling a challenge to Nadler, according to one person familiar with his thinking.
Natalie Barth, a philanthropist and pro-Israel activist who previously served as the president of Park Avenue Synagogue, has also been rumored to be considering a bid, said another person familiar with the matter, though it was unclear if she would mount a challenge or wait until Nadler steps down, as some have suggested he could do at the end of his term.
In an open-seat primary, the field could also widen considerably to include such potential candidates as Scott Stringer, a former city comptroller and Nadler protégé; Micah Lasher, an assemblyman close to the congressman; Keith Powers, a city councilman; and Liz Krueger, a state senator.
LePatner, a Blackstone executive, served on the boards of the Abraham Joshua Heschel School and UJA-Federation of New York
courtesy/UJA-Federation of NY
Wesley LePatner speaks at the UJA-Federation of New York's annual Wall Street Dinner in December 2023.
Wesley LePatner, a Blackstone executive who was involved with Jewish communal organizations in New York City, was killed in the Monday shooting at the firm’s Midtown headquarters, the company confirmed on Tuesday.
LePatner was the global head of Core+ Real Estate at Blackstone and CEO of Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, according to Blackstone’s website. A Yale graduate, she joined the company in 2014 after more than a decade at Goldman Sachs.
She served on the board of trustees at the Abraham Joshua Heschel School, a pluralistic Jewish day school in New York, and she joined the board of directors at UJA-Federation of New York earlier this month.
“We are devastated by the tragic loss of Wesley LePatner, a beloved member of UJA’s community and a member of our board of directors, who was killed in yesterday’s mass shooting in Midtown,” the federation said in a statement.
“Wesley was extraordinary in every way — personally, professionally, and philanthropically,” the organization said. “In the wake of Oct. 7, Wesley led a solidarity mission with UJA to Israel, demonstrating her enduring commitment in Israel’s moment of heartache. She lived with courage and conviction, instilling in her two children a deep love for Judaism and the Jewish people.”
In 2023, LePatner was awarded the Alan C. Greenberg Young Leadership Award at UJA’s 2023 annual Wall Street dinner. In a speech, she outlined her involvement with the organization, dating back nearly two decades.
“I first attended the UJA Wall Street dinner as a young analyst in 2004, where I am pretty certain I sat in one of the last tables at the back of the room,” LePatner said at the event, which took place two months after the Oct. 7 attacks. “Never in my wildest imagination could I have believed that I would be up on this stage two decades later. UJA has many super-powers, but its most important in my view is its power to create a sense of community and belonging, and that ability to create a sense of community and belonging matters now more than ever.”
LePatner also sat on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Yale University Library Council and Nareit, a real estate organization.
The shooting also claimed a second Jewish victim, Julia Hyman. A Cornell graduate, Hyman worked for Rudin Management in the Midtown skyscraper.
Ofir Akunis, consul general of Israel in New York, called the murder of LePatner and Hyman — as well as NYPD Officer Didarul Islam — “horrific and senseless” at the Israel on Campus Coalition’s National Leadership Summit in Washington on Tuesday. “In this difficult moment, Israel stands in solidarity with New Yorkers and all Americans,” Akunis said.
Plus, Roy Cooper is running 🏃♂️
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
New York mayoral candidate, State Rep. Zohran Mamdani (D-NY) greets voters with Democratic mayoral candidate Michael Blake on 161st Street on June 24, 2025 in the South Bronx in New York City. Mamdani held several campaign events throughout the day including greeting voters with mayoral candidates Blake and NYC Comptroller and Mayoral Candidate Brad Lander as voters in NYC vote for the democratic nominee for mayor to replace Mayor Eric Adams.
Good Tuesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we talk to Jewish communal leaders in New York City about the reluctance to publicly oppose Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s candidacy in the absence of a viable challenger, and look at former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s record on Israel following the launch of his Senate bid. We spotlight the increasingly anti-Israel rhetoric from former senior Obama administration officials, and report on FEMA’s delayed opening of applications for 2025 Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Eden Golan, Wallis Annenberg and Matti Friedman.
What We’re Watching
- The Senate Armed Services Committee is holding a classified briefing today on the U.S.’ June strikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities.
- The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding confirmation hearings today for Michel Issa to be U.S. ambassador to Lebanon and Duke Buchan, the former Republican National Committee finance director, to be ambassador to Morocco.
- The Israel on Campus Coalition’s National Leadership Conference wraps up today in Washington. Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) and Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) are slated to speak at the confab’s closing session.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S Josh kraushaar
One of the defining features of our politics over the last decade has been the declining power of institutions, combined with the growing influence of individuals acting in their narrow self-interest, frequently at the expense of the public interest.
President Donald Trump’s ability in 2016 to bypass the Republican establishment benefitting from a crowded, self-interested opposition, was one of the seminal moments in our brave new world of individualism over institutionalism. Party institutions, outside-group spending and strident media criticism were no match for the grassroots army that rallied to Trump in that election.
Ten years later, the inability of moderate Democrats and other mainstream institutions to organize any coalition against the campaign of far-left New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani looks like the culmination of a dynamic where leaders feel powerless to lead, and are instead simply standing aside, ceding any influence to a cadre of ideological activists within the party.
What’s remarkable about this moment is that the top Democratic leaders in New York, over a month after the primary, aren’t supporting Mamdani — but aren’t willing to speak out against him, either. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) have all stayed on the sidelines, reflecting the state of political purgatory that many mainstream leaders are in right now.
WAIT-AND-SEE APPROACH
New York Jewish leaders reluctant to fight against Mamdani
In recent weeks, a creeping sense of frustration has settled in among many Jewish leaders in New York City as they have reckoned with the dawning reality that no one is stepping up to organize opposition to Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports. Without a well-funded outside effort, Mamdani faces few obstacles in the general election despite numerous political vulnerabilities.
‘Just grasping’: The complacency comes even as top Democratic leaders in New York have so far declined to endorse Mamdani, whose antagonistic views on Israel and democratic socialist affiliation have engendered criticism. But with a divided field of warring and baggage-laden candidates, Jewish leaders have privately voiced disappointment at the current state of the race. “Big-money people are talking every week about how we have to do something, but I haven’t seen a real plan,” said one Jewish leader. “People are just grasping,” he added. “There’s a sense of frustration out there and fear of a letdown.”
TARHEEL STATE TEST
Cooper brings moderate record, political success to pivotal Senate battleground
Former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to seek the Democratic nomination for North Carolina’s open Senate seat has equipped the party with a moderate standard-bearer with a strong relationship with the state’s Jewish community. But his handling of anti-Israel activism within the North Carolina Democratic party is expected to become an issue in the Senate race, one that Republicans are already seeking to exploit, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
Looking inwards: When confronted with anti-Israel extremism within his own state party, Cooper has been more cautious. The former governor did not initially weigh in on the resolution passed by the North Carolina Democratic Party last month calling for an arms embargo on Israel, as well as on the other anti-Israel measures adopted by the state party. Reached for comment on the state party measures by JI on Monday, Cooper said in a statement: “I don’t agree with the party resolution, and Israel is an important ally. Israel needs to take seriously the job of getting humanitarian aid into Gaza right now. The hostages must be returned and I continue to pray for a swift end to this war and a meaningful peace in the region.”
Stein says: North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, also criticized the resolutions passed by the state’s Democratic Party last month targeting Israel, urging party leaders on Monday to instead prioritize efforts that tackle the problems “we’re facing here in North Carolina,” Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
MIXED MESSAGES
Trump breaks with Netanyahu on acknowledging ‘starvation’ in Gaza
President Donald Trump decried the humanitarian situation in Gaza on Monday, telling reporters that he does “not particularly” agree with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assessment that there is no starvation taking place in the enclave, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports. “That’s real starvation stuff,” Trump said, following a meeting in Scotland with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer. “I see it, and you can’t fake that.”
Seeking solutions: Trump said the U.S. will be getting “even more involved” in taking steps toward addressing hunger in Gaza, including by setting up “food centers.” A White House spokesperson declined to comment when asked for specifics about what this plan might entail. Trump said “all of the European nations” would be part of the project. “We’re going to do it in conjunction with some very good people, and we’re going to supply funds,” said Trump.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem: Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar doubled down on the argument that claims of starvation in Gaza are the result of a “distorted campaign,” during a press conference on Tuesday, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports. “We have been working very hard under complicated circumstances from the beginning of the war to this day to facilitate humanitarian aid into Gaza.”
PODCAST POLITICS
Former Obama staffers turned podcasters reemerge to lead anti-Israel chorus
Former Obama administration officials Ben Rhodes and Tommy Vietor took to social media over the weekend to attack Israel and slam the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, asking how it’s possible to “trust Democrats to fight for anything” if they take money from the pro-Israel lobby group. The anti-Israel activism from the Democratic influencers is a public example of the intense lobbying taking place in party circles and how progressive foreign policy officials such as Rhodes who have long been deeply critical of Israel are pushing to turn humanitarian concerns in Gaza into a more permanent split between the Democratic Party and Israel, Jewish Insider’s Danielle Cohen-Kanik reports.
AIPAC attack: Rhodes and Vietor especially directed their ire at AIPAC, which played a key role in Democrats electing some moderate candidates supportive of a close U.S.-Israel alliance to office last year. The left-wing commentators who host a weekly foreign policy podcast, “Pod Save the World,” decried AIPAC for a post on X where the organization said that “food, medicine and aid are IN Gaza. The @UN won’t distribute it.” Rhodes said AIPAC is “spreading lies. The Israeli government is starving Palestinians and everyone knows it. How can we trust Democrats to fight for anything if they take money from people who lie like this about starving kids,” the former Obama deputy national security advisor posted on Friday.
LATE ROLLOUT
Under pressure, FEMA opens applications for 2025 Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding
The Federal Emergency Management Agency opened applications on Monday for 2025 Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding, months after the applications traditionally open and amid pressure from lawmakers and community stakeholders, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Status check: Applications for the funding round are due Aug. 11. This application round pertains to the $274.5 million in funding that Congress appropriated for the 2025 grant cycle. An additional $126 million in funding for the NSGP remains outstanding from the national security supplemental bill Congress passed last year. Organizations have already applied for that funding tranche. FEMA did not respond to a request for comment on when that funding will be allocated.
Bonus: The Senate Appropriations Committee’s Justice Department budget bill released last week sets up a clash with the House over funds aimed at combating hate crimes. The House bill aims to eliminate that funding, supported by key Jewish groups, for 2026, while the Senate bill would preserve it.
Worthy Reads
The Hunger Games: The Free Press’ Matti Friedman lays out the challenges in getting accurate information regarding humanitarian aid and malnutrition in Gaza. “The transformation of truth-telling institutions into ideological megaphones has had a high price for citizens in liberal societies and for the institutions themselves, as we’re now seeing at places like Harvard and NPR. The feeling of being unmoored from objective reality — of rowing a boat through a choppy sea of lies and propaganda — is very much a feature of the present moment, and not only in Israel. But one of the most awful prices was made clear this past week, with reports of acute hunger in Gaza. In a blizzard of ideological fiction, how are sane citizens in Israel, or anywhere else, supposed to know what’s true and to do the right thing? It’s not an exaggeration to say, as we’re seeing right now, that the answer to this question can be a matter of life and death.” [FreePress]
Screen Time: Against the backdrop of media coverage of the growing food crisis in Gaza, The Atlantic’s David Graham looks at the role television news plays in informing President Donald Trump. “As president, Trump has access to the most powerful information-gathering network in the world, yet he takes his cues from what he watches on television. This helps him see the news from the same perspective as the general public, which has enabled his political success. But it also narrows his understanding, and it makes him highly susceptible to manipulation. … This means that despite access to high-quality information about what’s going on in Gaza, he seems to really perk up only once it’s on the tube. Such a narrow information stream is a problem, because TV is not a good source of information on its own; it should be consumed as part of a balanced news diet.” [TheAtlantic]
For Pete’s Sake: Politico’s Rachael Bade looks at the relationship between President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth following a series of missteps and moves that are at odds with the White House. “Concerned that the laundry list of scandals could lead to his downfall, they’ve implored Hegseth in private conversations to rethink surrounding himself with people the White House distrusts. Others are urging Hegseth to make peace with the former employees he ousted and accused of leaking. A smaller group is even quietly working to help those employees land a public apology or some sort of exoneration of their character. ‘If there’s any chance at Pete resetting and ensuring that whatever time he has left in this position is well served, he’s got to do it — otherwise Pete is just doubling down on the lie,’ said the person close to Hegseth. So far, however, he has yet to heed the warning.” [Politico]
Water Woes: The Financial Times’ Chloe Cornish, Eleni Varvitsioti and Ahmed Al Omran spotlight the growing use of desalinization plants by governments in the Middle East and southern Mediterranean, as the region grapples with mounting water crises and rising temperatures. “Reducing energy consumption has made producing desalinated water less polluting in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, and reduced the costs. In Israel, water produced by the Sorek B desalination plant is priced at about 40 cents per cubic metre, which is enough for 25 showers, according to Thames Water. Dubai utility Dewa will get a price of 37 cents per cubic metre for water from its Hassyan desalination plant, which is due to start operations next year. … Academics in Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest desalinated water producer, are trying to tackle the brine problem. Zhiping Lai, a professor at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, is mining the brine for valuable elements such as lithium and potassium, which have commercial uses.” [FT]
Word on the Street
A Blackstone executive and NYPD officer were among four people killed in a shooting last night at Blackstone’s Park Avenue headquarters in Manhattan; the suspect, who was reportedly targeting NFL headquarters in the same building, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound…
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed an MOU earlier this month with Qatar for the “unconditional donation” of a luxury jet…
The Senate Appropriations Committee‘s Justice Department budget bill released last week sets up a clash with the House over funds aimed at combating hate crimes; the House bill aims to eliminate that funding, supported by key Jewish groups, for 2026, while the Senate bill would preserve it…
Sen. Angus King (I-ME) accused Israel of deliberately causing a famine in Gaza, calling its actions in Gaza “an affront to human decency,” and said that he “will advocate — and vote — for an end to any United States support whatsoever [for Israel] until there is a demonstrable change in the direction of Israeli policy.”…
Two members of the Boulder, Colo., City Council accused a colleague of posting content on social media that “crossed a serious line into antisemitism”…
Harvard is reportedly open to spending as much as $500 million to resolve its legal disputes with the Trump administration, following an agreement between the government and Columbia University last week in which the New York school agreed to pay $200 million and undertake a series of steps to address campus antisemitism…
Singer Regina Spektor‘s weekend concert in Portland, Ore., was disrupted by anti-Israel protesters…
An Oregon man was sentenced to 60 months in prison over a series of bomb threats to Jewish institutions in the New York area dating back to 2021…
Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen, who appeared in the recent Oscar-winning film “No Other Land,” was shot and killed by an Israeli settler in the West Bank on Monday; the Trump administration had recently lifted sanctions that had been imposed on Hathaleen’s alleged assailant, Yinon Levi, by the Biden administration…
Israel’s Elbit Systems was awarded a $260 million contract with the German government to supply defensive systems for Berlin’s A400M aircraft fleet…
The Financial Times reviews Scott Anderson’s King of Kings, which focuses on the fall of the shah in Iran in 1979…
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said that officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency are expected to travel to the country in the next two weeks for talks aimed at restarting inspections of Iran’s nuclear sites…
Los Angeles-based philanthropist Wallis Annenberg, whose family foundation, which she led for more than 30 years, gave over $3 billion to an array of causes, died at 86…
Longtime Washington Post reporter Morton Mintz died at 103…
Pic of the Day
Israeli singer Eden Golan performed her 2024 Eurovision Song Contest entry “Hurricane” on Monday at the Israel on Campus Coalition’s National Leadership Summit in Washington.
Birthdays
Tony Award-winning actor, Ari’el Stachel turns 34…
Chairman of BOK Financial Corporation in Tulsa, Okla., George Bruce Kaiser turns 83… Shoe designer, entrepreneur and founder of an eponymous shoe company, Stuart A. Weitzman turns 76… Denver-based trial lawyer, film producer and author of both fiction and nonfiction, Kenneth Eichner turns 71… Israeli electrical engineer and inventor, he is best known as the inventor of the USB memory stick, Dov Moran turns 70… Former deputy health and science editor at The Washington Post, Carol Eisenberg… Attorney general of Israel from 2016 to 2022, Avichai Mandelblit turns 62… Global economics and geopolitical correspondent for The New York Times, Peter S. Goodman turns 59… Actor and comedian, best known for his voice work in animation and video games, Richard Steven Horvitz turns 59… Twin brothers, Los Angeles based philanthropists and businessmen, Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz and Yisroel Zev Rechnitz turn 54… Actor, filmmaker and musician, he is best known for his role in the CBS sitcom “How I Met Your Mother,” Joshua Radnor turns 51… Chief White House correspondent for NBC News, Peter Alexander turns 49… SVP of philanthropic engagement at BBYO, Jayme David… Director of the Straus Center at Yeshiva University, he is also the Rabbi of NYC’s Congregation Shearith Israel (The Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue), Rabbi Meir Yaakov Soloveichik turns 48… Data scientist and journalist focused on elections for the Associated Press, Aaron Kessler… Former member of the Canadian Parliament, David de Burgh Graham turns 44… Iraq war veteran, political and communications strategist, she is now serving as an adjunct professor at Duke University, Allison Jaslow… Rabbi, writer, educator and physician assistant, Rabbi Levi Welton… White House principal deputy communications director during the Biden administration, Herbie Ziskend… SVP in the Los Angeles office of Edelman, Jason Levin… Israeli actress, model and television presenter, Maya Wertheimer turns 35… D.C. attorney, Daniel Ryan Vinik… Uriel Wassner… Broadcaster and media relations manager for the Chicago Dogs and Windy City Bulls, Sam Brief… Quarterback for the NFL’s Washington Commanders, Sam Hartman turns 26…
One Jewish political leader: ‘No one thinks it’s going to be good for the Jewish community to be hostile and to be in constant war with the next mayor’
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, attends an endorsement event from the union DC 37 on July 15, 2025, in New York City.
In recent weeks, a creeping sense of frustration has settled in among many Jewish leaders in New York City as they have reckoned with the dawning reality that no one is stepping up to organize opposition to Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor. Without a well-funded outside effort, Mamdani faces few obstacles in the general election despite numerous political vulnerabilities.
The complacency comes even as top Democratic leaders in New York have so far declined to endorse Mamdani, whose antagonistic views on Israel and democratic socialist affiliation have engendered criticism. But with a divided field of warring and baggage-laden candidates, Jewish leaders have privately voiced disappointment at the current state of the race.
“Big-money people are talking every week about how we have to do something, but I haven’t seen a real plan,” said one Jewish community leader who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. “People are just grasping,” he added. “There’s a sense of frustration out there and fear of a letdown.”
“You can’t beat somebody with nobody,” another Jewish leader said in assessing Mamdani’s rivals, including incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa, the GOP nominee — all of whom have so far resisted pleas to suspend their campaigns in order to avoid splitting the vote.
While some independent expenditure committees are preparing to spend heavily in the race to target Mamdani, an assemblyman from Queens whose far-left policies have provoked anxiety among Jewish New Yorkers, moderate voters and business leaders, the Jewish leader expressed skepticism that such efforts would ultimately “make a difference” as long as the election remains crowded with multiple opponents.
In the Hasidic enclave of Williamsburg, “the rank and file and donors are concerned” about Mamdani, said a source familiar with the situation. “But at the leadership level, people are mostly thinking that it’s a foregone conclusion” that Mamdani will prevail in November. “There’s not much to do and we have to start adapting and have to try to make amends with him and work with him.”
Jim Walden, an attorney, is also running as an independent alongside Adams and Cuomo, who in recent days have exchanged criticism as Mamdani, leading most polls with a plurality of the vote, stayed away from the headlines while celebrating his recent marriage in his birthplace of Uganda.
In the Hasidic enclave of Williamsburg, “the rank and file and donors are concerned” about Mamdani, said a source familiar with the situation. “But at the leadership level, people are mostly thinking that it’s a foregone conclusion” that Mamdani will prevail in November. “There’s not much to do and we have to start adapting and have to try to make amends with him and work with him.”
“No one thinks it’s going to be good for the Jewish community to be hostile and to be in constant war with the next mayor,” the source said on Monday. “For the community’s sake, we have to move on.”
As the anti-Mamdani coalition has struggled to coalesce more than a month after his shocking primary upset, the organized Jewish community is now largely taking a “wait-and-see” approach to the upcoming election, several Jewish activists told Jewish Insider on Monday.
David Greenfield, who leads the Jewish anti-poverty group Met Council and has been a fierce critic of Mamdani, said that many Jewish leaders are “watching closely to determine if he’ll moderate his socialist positions now that he has secured the Democratic nomination.”
“Zohran has floated possibly keeping NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and that has caught the attention of several community leaders,” Greenfield told JI. “Currently, the race is quiet, partly due to Zohran himself being on vacation this month, but we expect it will significantly heat up again after Labor Day.”
A Jewish political activist who was not authorized to speak on the record echoed that assessment, even as he noted that some Jewish community leaders have been seeking to register new voters and working on “community structuring” in advance of the general election.
Still, he speculated that “if the race stays as is, then there will be a quiet shift to have conversations with Mamdani.”
For now, most mainstream Jewish groups remain hesitant to meet privately with Mamdani, according to a Jewish activist familiar with the matter, but the Democratic nominee has stepped up his outreach to Jewish voters and elected officials — while slightly softening his widely criticized defense of the slogan “globalize the intifada,” a phrase that many Jews interpret as a call to antisemitic violence. Mamdani has refused to personally condemn the slogan, but recently said he now discourages its use, marking a reversal from his primary comments as he seeks to grow his coalition.
“We’re planning to get started in August with messaging,” Jeff Leb, a political consultant who is leading a new super PAC called “New Yorkers for a Better Future Mayor 2025,” said on Monday. “I don’t think that people are sleeping on Zohran,” he said of the race. “I just think they’re making sure they have the resources they have to be active. Right now it’s a little bit early.”
Despite his evolution on the phrase, Mamdani remains a staunch opponent of Israel, backing the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement he has indicated he could implement if elected. He has also suggested he would not visit Israel as mayor — defying a long-standing precedent in a place that is home to the largest Jewish population of any city in the world.
There are, to be sure, a range of anti-Mamdani initiatives underway in the Jewish community and beyond — some of which are expected to pick up in the coming weeks as summer begins to wind down after a period of relative inactivity, people involved in the efforts told JI.
Jeff Leb, a political consultant who is leading a new super PAC called “New Yorkers for a Better Future Mayor 2025” that plans to raise at least $20 million to hit Mamdani, told JI the group has in recent weeks held Zoom calls with more than 500 people and secured commitments as it readies attacks “to educate the public on Zohran’s priorities.”
“We’re planning to get started in August with messaging,” Leb said on Monday, noting that the super PAC is currently “candidate-agnostic” and will get behind Adams or Cuomo later in the race when polling indicates who is most favored. “I don’t think that people are sleeping on Zohran,” he said of the race. “I just think they’re making sure they have the resources they have to be active. Right now it’s a little bit early.”
Meanwhile, Eric Levine, a top GOP fundraiser in New York and a board member of the Republican Jewish coalition, is now organizing a fundraiser for Adams on Aug. 13, featuring former New York Gov. David Paterson and several donors from the legal and financial communities, according to an invite he has circulated within his network in recent days.
The Flatbush Jewish Community Coalition, which endorsed Cuomo in the primary but has not made a decision in the general election, recently launched a voter registration drive to boost Jewish turnout in November, Josh Mehlman, the group’s chairman, said on Monday.
The organization is expecting to register “tens of thousands of new voters,” Mehlman confirmed in a statement to JI. “With the political turbulence and antisemitism that unfortunately surrounds us, it is more clear than ever that the importance of every resident registering to vote for the upcoming and future elections will shape the quality of life and security of our communities,” he explained. “Our renewed efforts reflect that urgency.”
“No one wants to be fighting with the guy,” one Jewish leader said of Mamdani, acknowledging his rhetoric on Israel had evolved but not far enough to satisfy his most ardent skeptics. “No one wants to be in this position. But at the same time, I would put the onus on him. He’s the one who’s going to need to make changes.”
Sara Forman, the executive director of the New York Solidarity Network, a local pro-Israel group whose super PAC endorsed Cuomo in the primary, said the organization is now “keeping a close eye on everything that’s happening” in the race “and on its impact on the Jewish community,” while cautioning against “premature” conclusions at this stage of the election.
“Whether the field of candidates is able to coalesce in some way and what that looks like in September is very different from the end of July,” she told JI on Monday.
Privately, many Jewish leaders have fretted about the seemingly disaggregated and inchoate efforts to oppose Mamdani at a pivotal point in the race — as the current field continues to remain unsettled with limited time until the election.
“No one wants to be fighting with the guy,” one Jewish leader said of Mamdani, acknowledging his rhetoric on Israel had evolved but not far enough to satisfy his most ardent skeptics. “No one wants to be in this position. But at the same time, I would put the onus on him. He’s the one who’s going to need to make changes.”
The Pennsylvania governor told JI: ‘When supporters of yours say things that are blatantly antisemitic, you can't leave room for that to just sit there’
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro greets the crowd before the start of a campaign rally at Temple University on August 6, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
LEWISTOWN, Pa. — Inside a coffee shop in this small town of 8,500 people, hundreds of miles from the bustle of Manhattan, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro made his first public comments about Zohran Mamdani, criticizing the New York City Democratic mayoral candidate for not taking a stronger stand against “extremists” who have made “blatantly antisemitic” comments.
“He seemed to run a campaign that excited New Yorkers. He also seemed to run a campaign where he left open far too much space for extremists to either use his words or for him to not condemn the words of extremists that said some blatantly antisemitic things,” Shapiro told Jewish Insider in an interview on Wednesday.
Shapiro’s comments come as Mamdani, who defeated former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary last month, continues to face backlash for declining to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada.” (Mamdani told business leaders last week that he would “discourage” use of the slogan.)
National Democratic figures have struggled to figure out how to respond to Mamdani’s come-from-behind victory and to assess what the election of a self-proclaimed democratic socialist as the Democratic nominee for mayor of the largest city in the country means for the future of the party.
Neither Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) nor House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) have endorsed Mamdani, while some progressive leaders — such as Sens. Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) — have embraced him. Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), another swing-state Democrat, said on Wednesday that Mamdani’s victory is a “message” that “cost of living and the economy is the driving issue for the average person.”
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin, when asked about Mamdani’s handling of the “globalize the intifada” slogan, said earlier this month that he did not agree with everything Mamdani has said, but that the Democrats are a “big tent” party. Martin later clarified that he found the “intifada” phrase “reckless and dangerous.”
Widely viewed as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, Shapiro has steered clear of weighing in on a number of divisive national issues, preferring instead to focus on Pennsylvania, where he maintains a 61% approval rating. But on Wednesday, he offered a sharp message to Mamdani.
“I’ll say this about Mamdani or any other leader,” Shapiro said. “If you want to lead New York, you want to lead Pennsylvania, you want to lead the United States of America, you’re a leader. I don’t care if you’re a Republican or Democratic leader or a democratic socialist leader. You have to speak and act with moral clarity, and when supporters of yours say things that are blatantly antisemitic, you can’t leave room for that to just sit there. You’ve got to condemn that.”
At a moment of declining support for Israel within the Democratic Party, the Jewish governor told JI that he stands by his pro-Israel bona fides.
“I think one of the things that always strengthened Israel was the fact that the relationship America had with Israel was not even bipartisan, but somewhat nonpartisan. Figuring out ways to build bridges between the parties, between people of different walks of life, to support Israel, I think is important,” he noted. “I think just in general, across the board, I want to see more support for Israel, for a Jewish state. That doesn’t mean that one can’t be critical of Israeli policy.”
There is more that politicians on both sides of the aisle need to do to maintain support for Israel and the U.S.-Israel relationship, Shapiro said, though he added that “the majority of that work is going to happen in Washington.” He declined to specifically address Democrats’ views on Israel or polling that showed a massive drop in Democratic support for Israel since 2023.
“I don’t do foreign policy in Pennsylvania in my role as governor, but I do think it is important to repair that relationship,” Shapiro said. “I am concerned that support for Israel in the United States broadly is down compared to what it was a decade ago.”
It isn’t only American leaders who need to work to strengthen ties between Israel and the U.S., Shapiro said. He placed some of the blame on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“I think if you care about the future safety and security of Israel, and you’re the leader of Israel as Netanyahu is at present time, you’ve got to find ways to build bridges to people in both parties, to leaders in both parties,” said Shapiro, who has long been a critic of Netanyahu’s leadership. But he asserted that opposition to Netanyahu as prime minister should not be equated with opposition to the existence of a Jewish state.
“There are policies of the Netanyahu government that I don’t support. I’ve been very vocal about that. But there’s a difference between not supporting the policies of whoever’s in charge at a particular time, and the underlying notion of a Jewish state of Israel,” said Shapiro. “I do think it is important to strengthen people’s understanding of Israel and the relationship America should have with Israel and to strengthen that bond.”
Shapiro, one of the most prominent Jewish politicians in the country, has been on the receiving end of antisemitic smears over his support for Israel. In April, the governor’s mansion in Harrisburg was set ablaze in an arson attack just hours after Shapiro and his family had hosted a Passover Seder.
Police said the alleged perpetrator was motivated by anti-Israel animus, but Shapiro has repeatedly declined to characterize the incident as antisemitic in nature, saying that doing so would be “unhelpful” to prosecutors who have not brought hate crime charges.
Shapiro told JI the arson attack left a profound impact on him, both personally and religiously. It brought him closer, he said, to “my faith and my spirituality.”
“It made me believe even more, not just in my God, but in the power of prayer,” said Shapiro. “It’s given me a deeper, spiritual connection of my faith and a deeper connection to people of other faiths.”
The Israeli leader called Zohran Mamdani’s policy proposals ‘a one-term effort ... A lot of people have been taken in by this nonsense’
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani briefly speaks with reporters as he leaves the Dirksen Senate Office Building on July 16, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu argued that young people in America are won over “pretty quickly” by the truth about the situation in Israel, when discussing New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani on a podcast released Monday, and suggested that Mamdani’s policies would be unpopular if he’s elected.
“A lot of people have been taken in by this nonsense,” Netanyahu said, on the “Full Send” podcast, hosted by a social media influencer group called the Nelk Boys popular with young men.
“Sometimes folly overtakes human affairs for a while, but not for long, because reality steps in,” Netanyahu said. “I’m obviously not happy with it, but I’m less concerned with it, because I think if we can speak the truth to the young people of America, they wise up pretty quickly.”
The Israeli leader also addressed other policies supported by Mamdani, including the Democratic mayoral nominee’s past support for defunding the police and raising taxes.
“You want to defund the police? You want to have people go into stores and rob them and be free? You think that really creates a good society? You want to crush all enterprise? You want to tax people to death?” Netanyahu said. “That’s a one-term effort, but sometimes you have to get mugged by reality to understand how stupid that is. So that’s silly.”
During a private meeting between the NYC mayoral nominee and largely progressive House Democrats on Wednesday, Gottheimer did not raise concerns with Mamdani that he has vocalized elsewhere
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP Images
Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) holds a news conference in the Capitol on Wednesday, December 4, 2019.
Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), in a private meeting with House Democrats in Washington on Wednesday, avoided confronting Zohran Mamdani, the far-left Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, over his controversial defense of calls to “globalize the intifada” and fierce opposition to Israel.
Gottheimer, a moderate Jewish Democrat who is among the most outspoken supporters of Israel in the House, has not been shy about publicly calling out members of his own party when disagreements over Israel and antisemitism have arisen in recent years.
But during the breakfast meeting this week, Gottheimer did not bring up his objections to the 33-year-old democratic socialist, according to a House aide familiar with the matter, even as his views on Israel have raised alarms among Jewish voters and faced pushback from Democratic leaders who have so far withheld endorsements in the New York City mayoral race.
In a statement, Gottheimer reiterated his concerns about Mamdani’s progressive policy proposals and his acceptance of rhetoric that Jewish leaders have condemned as antisemitic. But the New Jersey congressman suggested he was willing to hear from the mayoral nominee about his stunning primary upset that has rattled the political establishment.
“I don’t think higher taxes, anti-job creating socialism, and an acceptance of antisemitic rhetoric is the right direction for America,” Gottheimer told Jewish Insider, echoing comments he shared in an interview with CNBC on Thursday morning and elsewhere in recent weeks. “That said, I am always open to learning how I can reach more people with my commonsense, problem-solving approach.”
He declined to comment further on the meeting to JI on Thursday. “I don’t have anything to say beyond what I put out,” the congressman said.
Later on Thursday, Gottheimer announced he was introducing a bipartisan resolution condemning the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which Mamdani has refused to condemn. The motto chanted frequently at anti-Israel demonstrations is “hate speech, plain and simple,” the congressman wrote in a statement that did not mention Mamdani, arguing such words “incite violence, fuel hate and put Jewish families at risk.”
Still, Gottheimer voiced no such disapproval in the Wednesday breakfast hosted by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — which included several progressive House Democrats and was promoted as a “communication and organizing” session as the party rethinks its messaging strategy ahead of next year’s midterms.
Gottheimer’s reticence to speak out directly during the in-person meeting stands in contrast with his past denunciations of Mamdani, whose defense of the “intifada” phrase — seen by critics as a violent provocation to target Jews — he has called “insane and unacceptable” amid rising antisemitic activity.
The divisive slogan “is a well-known antisemitic chant that calls for the eradication of Israel and violence against Jews,” Gottheimer said in a social media post a week before the primary last month.
“Zohran Mamdani’s pathetic, hateful lies are a blatant slap in the face of the Jewish community,” he added. “He must apologize immediately. I also suggest that he visit the Holocaust Museum in the coming days and learn why these words are so dangerous.”
Even as no discussion of Israel or antisemitism was raised at the Wednesday gathering, top Democrats have continued to signal their hesitation regarding Mamdani’s approach to such issues, particularly his stance on the “intifada” slogan that he has defended repeatedly as an expression of Palestinian rights.
For his part, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), who did not attend the breakfast but is expected to meet with Mamdani in New York City on Friday, has said that the nominee’s comments about the phrase will be a part of their discussion — suggesting that his support is likely contingent on a change in tone.
Mamdani, who has faced questions about the phrase in other meetings this week, has privately indicated he plans to take a more calibrated stance with regard to the matter, a key point of tension as he now works to expand his coalition in a crowded race that includes Mayor Eric Adams and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, both running as independents.
The Democratic mayoral nominee said in a private meeting with business leaders earlier this week that he would “discourage” use of the phrase but still did not go so far as to condemn it himself, according to reports of the closed-door discussion on Tuesday.
Additional reporting contributed by JI senior congressional correspondent Marc Rod
The 78-year-old congressman, who co-chairs the Jewish Caucus in the House, has been working to build support for Mamdani in the Jewish community
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) arrives to view proceedings in immigration court at the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building on June 18, 2025 in New York City.
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) is facing backlash from some Jewish community leaders over his efforts to boost Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City whose criticism of Israel and refusal to condemn calls to “globalize the intifada” have stoked accusations of antisemitism.
Nadler, the dean of New York City’s congressional delegation and co-chair of the House Jewish Caucus, endorsed Mamdani shortly after his stunning upset over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in last month’s primary, and he has been working behind the scenes to build support for the nominee within the Jewish community, sources told Jewish Insider.
The 78-year-old congressman organized a meeting on Monday between Mamdani and state and local Jewish elected officials, some of whom chose not to join because of Mamdani’s hostility toward Israel, according to one person familiar with the matter.
Nadler’s advocacy has fueled frustration and anger among some local Jewish community activists and elected officials who oppose Mamdani and feel that the congressman is misguided in his support for the democratic socialist Queens assemblyman whose stances on Israel he has long rejected. Others suggested that Nadler chose to endorse Mamdani simply to ward off a primary challenge from his left as he plans to seek reelection next year — amid speculation he could soon retire from the House.
Nadler’s support for Mamdani stands in sharp contrast to the lack of endorsements for the Democratic mayoral nominee from some of the state’s leading New York Democratic officials, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Gov. Kathy Hochul and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY).
Kalman Yeger, an Orthodox assemblyman from Brooklyn who has called Mamdani “one of the most vile antisemites in public office,” said of Nadler that “many people are disappointed that someone who considers himself a pro-Israel Democrat and fighter against antisemitism would endorse the assemblyman just a day after the primary, without addressing any of the multitude of his troubling positions.”
“I have no idea why the congressman felt the need to make his endorsement, but it’s certainly fair to question his judgment and commitment to standing up for the safety of Jewish New Yorkers,” Yeger, a former city councilman who shared representation with Nadler of the Hasidic enclave of Borough Park in Brooklyn, told JI on Monday.
Nadler, for his part, has said he has spoken to Mamdani “about his commitment to fighting antisemitism,” but the congressman has remained relatively quiet with regard to their differences on Israel. While Mamdani has long backed the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel, for instance, Nadler has characterized BDS as a form of “pernicious antisemitism” and touted his “opposition to efforts legitimize and expand” the movement “within New York’s higher education institutions.”
Mamdani, 33, has also repeatedly declined invitations to speak out against the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which critics view as a call to antisemitic violence.
Nadler’s congressional colleagues in New York who have so far refrained from backing Mamdani — including Schumer and Jeffries — have indicated that Mamdani’s continued refusal to condemn the slogan remains a key sticking point in their evaluation of the nominee as he seeks to shore up Democratic support.
Mamdani, who is facing a crowded general election field including Cuomo and Mayor Eric Adams, both running as independents, has rejected accusations of antisemitism, while pledging to protect the safety of Jewish New Yorkers amid a rise in anti-Jewish hate crimes.
A spokesperson for Nadler said the congressman has “reiterated” to Mamdani that he is “a strong Zionist and that he believes in a democratic Jewish state,” which the nominee has declined to support.
“We are working with him to inform him about concerns within the Jewish community,” the spokesperson told JI, noting that the meeting with Jewish leaders on Monday was a part of such outreach and that the nominee “is listening.”
Mamdani’s team did not respond to a request for comment about the meeting with Jewish officials brokered by Nadler.
Some Jewish community activists expressed anger that Nadler has helped validate Mamdani among Jewish voters without first having sought public reassurances other Democratic leaders seem to be awaiting.
“There’s definitely a frustration that Jerry just endorsed him for free, so to speak,” said one Jewish leader who asked to remain anonymous to speak candidly, claiming that Nadler had “thrown the Jewish community under the bus” to protect his seat in Congress.
Jeff Leb, a political consultant involved in Jewish causes who is helping to organize a newly created anti-Mamdani independent expenditure committee, said Nadler had “sold out” the Jewish community in backing the nominee, adding that the congressman is “clinging to his seat.”
“He is very, very nervous about having a progressive opponent backed by Zohran if he makes the bad decision to run again,” Leb told JI on Monday.
Nadler’s team insisted that he is not concerned about a challenge, even as the congressman’s district — which covers Manhattan’s Upper East and West Sides — voted overwhelmingly in favor of Mamdani and Brad Lander, the Jewish comptroller who cross-endorsed with the nominee during the primary.
Martin sought on Friday to clarify his comment made earlier in the week on ‘PBS Newshour’
Rod Lamkey, Jr./AP
Democratic National Committee chairman Ken Martin speaks after winning the vote at the Democratic National Committee winter meeting at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., Feb. 1, 2025.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin defended himself on Friday amid criticism that his response to a question about New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the “globalize the intifada” slogan did not sufficiently express his own view that the phrase should be condemned.
“The right-wing lie machine is at it again. That’s not what I said in this interview. I’ve never supported or condoned the phrase ‘globalize the intifada’, a phrase which is reckless and dangerous, as it can been [sic] seen as a green light to terror, and it should be unequivocally condemned,” Martin wrote in a response on X to the Washington Free Beacon.
“Let me be clear, at a time of rising antisemitism, there’s no place for rhetoric that can be seen as a call to violence,” he added.
Several Jewish Democrats and organizations that represent them defended Martin’s handling of the Wednesday “PBS NewsHour” interview fallout.
Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, told Jewish Insider on Friday that, “We welcome the clarification from Chair Martin that the phrase ‘globalize the intifada’ is reckless and dangerous because it can be seen as a green light to terror. Chair Martin has never supported or condoned this phrase, and has now made it clear that there’s no place for rhetoric that can be seen as a call to violence in the Democratic Party.”
“He also said that this phrase should be unequivocally condemned, and we would like to see all Democrats do exactly that,” Soifer told JI.
The Democratic Majority for Israel said in a statement that the group “appreciates the recognition by DNC chair Ken Martin that the phrase ‘Globalize the Intifada’ is a dangerous call to incite violent action against Jews & Israelis.”
“During the last two intifadas, thousands of innocent Israelis — Arabs and Jews — were victims of Palestinian terrorism. Words have meanings, and the meaning of that phrase is clear to those who have experienced the intifadas. This incitement of violence should never be acceptable and must be condemned unequivocally,” the statement continued.
Martin’s Friday comment was met with criticism from several Jewish Democrats.
Georgia Democratic state Rep. Esther Panitch took issue with the DNC chairman’s response, writing on X, “I am not right-wing, and I know what I heard. You have welcomed the person who refused to condemn the phrase you call dangerous. Why?”
Sara Forman, the executive director of the New York Solidarity Network, an organization representing Jews in New York, criticized Martin in a lengthy X post on Friday for his handling of the interview question and his subsequent tweet clarifying his position.
“There is no excuse the chair of @TheDemocrats could come up with to put the toothpaste back into the tube. Ken Martin is the chair of the DNC and his idiotic ‘big tent’ comment is now a party position with a high cost – the loss of normal Democrats around the country,” Forman wrote.
“Incumbents will be held accountable for his words against Republican challengers who will make it very difficult and expensive to hold swing districts. And D challengers will be playing right into the hands of their Republican incumbent opponents when they distance themselves from his comments,” she continued. “For a party chair to fundamentally misunderstand his role, which is to fundraise so Democrats can win elections, is insane.”
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
New York mayoral candidate, State Rep. Zohran Mamdani (D-NY) speaks to supporters during an election night gathering at The Greats of Craft LIC on June 24, 2025 in the Long Island City neighborhood of the Queens borough in New York City.
Since Zohran Mamdani won the Democratic nomination for New York City mayor, there’s been a fascinating disconnect between the polls showing Mamdani still vulnerable in the general election and the sclerosis among political leaders unable to make the tough decisions on whether to rally behind an alternative in a bid to stop the socialist candidate from becoming the next mayor.
There hasn’t been much good polling since the primary, but the most recent general election surveys all paint a picture of Mamdani leading the race with a plurality, but far below what a typical Democratic nominee should be receiving after a stunning, come-from-behind defeat of former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
One poll, conducted by the Democratic firm Slingshot Strategies between July 2-6, found Mamdani winning 35% of registered voters, Cuomo at 25%, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa tallying 14%, Mayor Eric Adams at 11% and attorney Jim Walden at 1%. Thirteen percent said they were undecided.
A late-June poll by the GOP firm American Pulse found Mamdani at 35%, Cuomo at 29%, Sliwa winning 16% and Adams with 14%. Asked whether they were leaning towards voting for Mamdani or anyone but Mamdani, it was close to an even split, with 48% leaning towards Mamdani and 46% preferring anyone else.
Of note, both polls found the combined Cuomo and Adams vote — which roughly encompasses the lion’s share of the moderate Democratic electorate — narrowly outpacing Mamdani’s share of support. In other words, the Mamdani alternative wouldn’t necessarily need a large portion of the Republican vote to prevail.
The obvious challenge for the anti-Mamdani forces is consolidating the field behind one leading opponent — or at least encouraging one of the two Democratic candidates in the race to drop out and endorse the other one. That’s a lot easier said than done.
The Cuomo camp rightly claims that, on paper, their numbers are stronger than the scandal-plagued Adams. The Adams camp rightly argues that Cuomo had his chance after blowing a very winnable race, thanks to a lackluster campaign operation and a lack of energy on the campaign trail — traits that won’t bode well for a general election rematch.
Both sides are correct in that all the Mamdani alternatives are seriously flawed. But looking at summer polls to predict how things could develop throughout the summer is a foolhardy exercise. After all, as we’ve written in these pages, the argument for defeating Mamdani doesn’t rest on the strength of the challenger, but the desire to build a broad coalition to stop a far-left activist from taking charge of the nation’s largest city.
Adams, as the incumbent, might be the better vehicle to put together that coalition despite his dismal favorability ratings right now. He’s already shown more agility as a general election candidate, framing the race between a silver-spooned socialist (Mamdani) against his blue-collar background.
On paper, Adams also seems better-positioned to win over enough Black voters and some crossover Republicans that Cuomo would likely struggle more in turning out. Cuomo is viewed as a partisan villain to most New York Republicans, and Adams has shown resilience with Black voters in his early campaign efforts.
But regardless of who is the strongest alternative, outside groups and business leaders need to start picking a side now if they have any hope of blocking Mamdani’s path to Gracie Mansion. It’s notable that most of the state’s top elected leaders — from Gov. Kathy Hochul to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries — have still not endorsed Mamdani, even though he was declared winner of the primary over two weeks ago.
The longer the anti-Mamdani forces wait to make their move, the easier it becomes for him to consolidate enough Democratic support to make the efforts even harder. The reality is the fear of failure is as significant for many of these stakeholders as the desire to prevent a far-left candidate from taking over Gracie Mansion.
Martin said the Democratic Party should be a ‘big tent’ that includes ‘new’ leftists
Rod Lamkey, Jr./AP
Democratic National Committee chairman Ken Martin speaks after winning the vote at the Democratic National Committee winter meeting at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Md., Feb. 1, 2025.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin declined on Wednesday to criticize New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the “globalize the intifada” slogan. The DNC chair, who was elected earlier this year, praised the party for being a “big tent” comprising different ideologies, including “leftists” such as Mamdani.
Asked during a “PBS NewsHour” interview about concerns from Jewish Democrats regarding Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the phrase, Martin replied, “There’s no candidate in this party that I agree 100 percent of the time with, to be honest with you. There’s things that I don’t agree with Mamdani that he said.”
Martin said that he had learned through his 14 years as chairman of the Minnesota Democratic Party and his tenure at the DNC “that you win through addition. You win by bringing people into your coalition. We have conservative Democrats. We have centrist Democrats. We have labor progressives like me, and we have this new brand of Democrat, which is the leftist.”
“We win by bringing people into that coalition. And at the end of the day, for me, that’s the type of party we’re going to lead. We are a big tent party. Yes, it leads to dissent and debate, and there’s differences of opinions on a whole host of issues. But we should celebrate that as a party and recognize, at the end of the day, we’re better because of it,” Martin said.
Martin also argued that national Democrats could learn from Mamdani’s primary campaign performance in terms of focusing their message away from President Donald Trump and toward a forward-looking vision.
“He campaigned for something. And this is a critical piece. We can’t just be in a perpetual state of resisting Donald Trump. Of course, we have to resist Donald Trump. There’s no doubt about it for all the reasons we just talked about. But we also have to give people a sense of what we’re for, what the Democratic Party is fighting for, and what we would do if they put us back in power,” Martin said.
“One of the lessons from Mamdani’s campaign is that he focused on affordability. He focused on a message that was resonant with voters and he campaigned for something, not against other people or against other things. He campaigned on a vision of how he was going to make New York City a better place to live,” he continued.
Martin praised the methods by which Mamdani’s campaign got its message out.
“The other lessons, of course, is the tactics he used to get his message out, both a very aggressive in-person campaigning, meeting voters where they’re at, and then also in those digital spaces, using very creative messaging to cut through the noise and to get to voters in an inexpensive but authentic way,” he said.
Columbia’s Hillel director said that the university is on track for a large incoming class of Jewish freshmen next year
CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images
Students are seen on the campus of Columbia University on April 14, 2025, in New York City.
Earlier this year at a symposium in New York City, Jewish scholars gathered to analyze the recent surge of antisemitism on college campuses and debate whether Jewish students still belong at the country’s elite bastions of higher education.
“I certainly don’t think that we should abandon great citadels of learning or be chased out of them, although to be there takes fortitude that I don’t think should be asked of every student,” Rabbi David Wolpe, a former visiting scholar at Harvard University Divinity School, said during the event’s opening address. “So I’m going to give a selective answer: it depends who.”
Over the next two months, college freshmen will embark on new chapters at universities around the country. Many Jewish students have found appeal in other top schools, such as Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn., and Washington University in St. Louis, where administrators were quick to enforce university rules amid rising antisemitism in the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, and therefore avoided much of the chaos that played out on other campuses.
But some Jewish students are still seeking admission to the country’s most prestigious schools.
Who are these students making the choice to display the fortitude that Wolpe referenced by attending Columbia and Harvard —- two Ivy League campuses that have been beset by nearly two years of controversy over anti-Israel encampments and classroom disruptions, physical assaults of Jewish students and battles with the federal government, including potential loss of accreditation — over an alleged failure to address antisemitism?
Leah Kreisler, a recent graduate of Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, Md., decided in ninth grade that she wanted to attend Columbia. Kreisler plans to enroll in Columbia’s dual-degree program with the Jewish Theological Seminary and will begin next year, following a gap year in Israel.
Recent events have only reinforced Kreisler’s dream of attending the storied institution. “Columbia has always had a politically charged environment and I honestly think that fits a part of who I am,” she told Jewish Insider. “I like having those kinds of discussions and engaging with people I disagree with. That spirit drew me to the school.”
She’s also hopeful that by the time she arrives at Columbia for the 2026-27 school year, “things will get figured out.” The university is in talks with the federal government to restore the institution’s federal funding, which was slashed in March due to the antisemitic demonstrations that have roiled the campus since Oct. 7.
Still, Kreisler admitted she’s “a little bit scared” to face antisemitism, which she hasn’t directly encountered in her tight-knit D.C. suburb with a sizable Jewish community. “There will probably be people in the streets doing antisemitic things,” she said, noting that she often gets “weird looks from Jewish members of the community” when she shares her plans to attend Columbia.
Laura Hosid runs a private business in Potomac guiding high school students through the college admissions process. She works with many students like Kreisler who are “often willing to overlook [antisemitism] at schools like Harvard and Columbia, if they can get in,” Hosid, who is Jewish, told JI.
“At slightly less selective schools, though, it’s more of a factor,” she said. “Students are willing to look away if there’s too much anti-Israel stuff.”
“Jewish life at Columbia is Dickens-esque: the best of times and the worst of times,” said a Jewish Columbia alum who requested to remain anonymous. “There are real challenges, but at the same time, you can go to Columbia Hillel, the Kraft Center for Jewish Life, and access the most interesting people in the world. Bob Kraft shows up for events,” he said, referencing the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots for whom the center is named.
“I’m certainly not discouraging students if they are interested in schools like Columbia and Harvard,” Hosid continued. “I’m just making sure that they are well aware of what’s going on there and how it compares to what the climate is like at other schools.”
A Jewish Columbia alum who requested to remain anonymous told JI that he still sees his alma mater as “an amazing New York City school with an incredible alumni network.” So he was supportive when his daughter, an incoming Columbia freshman, committed to the university.
“Jewish life at Columbia is Dickens-esque: the best of times and the worst of times,” he said. “There are real challenges, but at the same time, you can go to Columbia Hillel, the Kraft Center for Jewish Life, and access the most interesting people in the world. Bob Kraft shows up for events,” he said, referencing the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots for whom the center is named.
In 1967, Columbia’s student body was 40% Jewish, according to a Jewish Telegraphic Agency report at the time. But even as Jewish enrollment at Columbia has declined since then, it still has one of the highest percentages of Jewish undergraduates in the Ivy League, at an estimated 22%. “The numbers for this year’s incoming class are quite strong,” Brian Cohen, executive director of Columbia Hillel, told JI.
Cohen said that the center’s “top priority is to make sure that every Jewish student feels seen and supported and part of a vibrant Jewish community from the moment they arrive at Columbia University.”
“Everything we hear anecdotally is that the number of applications of Jewishly involved students to Harvard were stable — if not increased — from last year to this year,” said Rabbi Jason Rubenstein, the director of Harvard Hillel.
That’s been Hillel’s goal for years — even before antisemitism reached record highs on campus. But Cohen noted that for the past two academic years, “everything is ramped up.”
“We want to make sure that when we meet students and families face-to-face they already have some idea of who we are and the relationship isn’t starting from square one,” he said, outlining two priorities. “One is that students understand that they are entering into this thriving, diverse Jewish community on campus. [The second is] that, should any problems arise during their time at Columbia, they have trusted resources to go to that are easily accessible and can help support them in navigating the various university processes.”
Rabbi Jason Rubenstein, the director of Harvard Hillel, is similarly spending the summer preparing for a new class of Jewish students. He’s hearing less concern around antisemitism from incoming students and their parents compared to last year. “I think that’s a combination of all of us adjusting our baselines and knowing what we’re getting into, and that last year was calmer on campus than the year before.”
Like Columbia, Harvard has had billions of dollars in federal grants and contracts frozen by the Trump administration. The university filed suit against the government in April, claiming that the cuts violate the First Amendment. A 300-page antisemitism report released by the university in April described “severe problems” that Harvard’s Jewish students have faced in the classroom, on social media and through campus protests.
“Everything we hear anecdotally is that the number of applications of Jewishly involved students to Harvard were stable — if not increased — from last year to this year,” Rubenstein said. Ramaz, a Modern Orthodox Jewish day school in Manhattan, for instance, admitted five students to Harvard the past admissions cycle, with four planning to attend. “That’s the highest in living memory,” Rubenstein said.
One of the Ramaz graduates starting at Harvard this fall is Stella Hiltzik, who grew up hearing “incredible stories” from her mother’s time on the Boston campus. “But it wasn’t until I visited Harvard last year that I decided that was the place I wanted to be,” Hiltzik, whose major is undecided, told JI. She was drawn to Harvard “even despite all of the crazy things happening on campus” after seeing “how supportive, warm and comforting Jewish life on campus is — especially the Chabad. It feels like a sense of home,” Hiltzik said.
“Despite everything going on, when I say I’m going to Harvard, most people are proud of me and supportive,” Hiltzik continued. “But there are some people who ask me, ‘What are you thinking?’ For me, it’s honestly a cool conversation to have, because I get to tell them how I’m excited to be a Jewish voice on campus during these hard times.”
“Despite everything that has happened at Columbia,” Leah Kreisler, a recent graduate of Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, Md., said, “I don’t think that the solution to antisemitism is to remove ourselves from these institutions. That’s been my mentality throughout the college [application] process.”
“Jewish students are not being dissuaded,” Rubenstein said. “Which is a great thing because some people are chanting ‘Zionists are not welcome here’ and the one thing they most want is Jewish students to not come here.”
Students like Hiltzik and Kreisler offer a quiet rebuke to the billionaire alums of the Ivies who have begun to withhold their considerable donations. One Israeli venture capitalist went as far as to try to lure Jewish students attending Ivy League schools to transfer to universities in Israel.
“Despite everything that has happened at Columbia,” Kreisler said, “I don’t think that the solution to antisemitism is to remove ourselves from these institutions. That’s been my mentality throughout the college [application] process.”
“People shouldn’t be afraid to go to any of these schools,” echoed Hiltzik. “At the end of the day, you’re going to get a good education and you’re going to show everyone how cool it is to be a proud Jew. I feel, in a sense, that this is my version of fighting for my people.”
The senator apologized to Mamdani in a private phone call after saying in an interview that he had made ‘references to global jihad’
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on September 15, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) apologized to Zohran Mamdani for recently saying that he had made “references to global jihad,” as New York Democrats continue to weigh their response to the 33-year-old democratic socialist’s stunning upset in New York City’s mayoral primary last week that sent shockwaves through the party establishment.
The senator, who is among several Democratic leaders who have so far refrained from endorsing Mamdani in the general election, claimed in a radio interview last week that the Democratic nominee had made comments that are alarming to Jewish voters in New York, alluding to his controversial defense of calls to “globalize the intifada,” a phrase critics interpret as provoking violence against Jews.
“They are alarmed by past positions, particularly references to global jihad,” Gillibrand said in the interview on WNYC. “This is a very serious issue because people that glorify the slaughter of Jews create fear in our communities. The global intifada is a statement that means ‘destroy Israel and kill all the Jews.’”
While a spokesperson for Gillibrand, whose comments drew backlash, soon clarified that she “misspoke in that instance,” her team added on Tuesday that the junior senator had also privately apologized to Mamdani on Monday night, according to a readout of their call first shared with Politico.
The senator “apologized for mischaracterizing Mamdani’s record and for her tone on the call,” the readout stated, adding Gillibrand “said she believes Mr. Mamdani is sincere when he says he wants to protect all New Yorkers and combat antisemitism.”
The news of her apology came shortly after Mamdani had formally clinched the Democratic nomination on Tuesday, in a resounding, 12-point victory over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, his chief rival in the Democratic primary, who had already conceded.
Mamdani, who significantly expanded his initial seven-point lead on election night, won 56% of the vote in the third and final round of ranked-choice tabulations, with Cuomo in second place at 44%, according to the New York City Board of Elections results.
“I am humbled by the support of more than 545,000 New Yorkers in last week’s primary,” Mamdani said in a statement. “This is just the beginning of our expanding coalition to make New York City affordable. And we will do it together.”
Mamdani has been seeking to shore up support from Democratic leaders as he prepares for a fall general election against Eric Adams, the incumbent mayor running as an independent; Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee; and Jim Walden, an attorney also running as an independent. Cuomo will also be on the November ballot on an independent line, but has not yet indicated if he will mount a campaign.
Even as Mamdani has claimed backing from a growing number of state and local party leaders, federal lawmakers have largely been hesitant to fully embrace him, as he has continued to decline invitations to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada,” an issue that has dogged his campaign in recent weeks.
Gillibrand, for her part, said in the radio interview last week that she had spoken with Mamdani about Jewish security concerns, and that he had agreed to work with her to “protect all residents” amid rising antisemitism.
“These are things that I think are important to New Yorkers, and I will work with him when he gets elected, if he gets elected, to make sure everyone is protected,” she said.
Schumer condemns the phrase and ‘believes it should not be used because it has such dangerous implications’
HANNA LEKA/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
Protesters hold a banner reading "Globalize the Student Intifada" during a demonstration outside the ICE building in Washington, DC, on March 15, 2025.
Several Senate Democrats told Jewish Insider on Monday that calls to “globalize the intifada” are unacceptable and must be condemned, amid concerns from Jewish leaders and organizations over presumptive New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani’s defense of the slogan.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who has thus far not endorsed Mamdani, told JI he plans to meet with Mamdani in a few weeks, when asked about Mamdani’s refusal to condemn the slogan.
“Sen. Schumer condemns the phrase ‘Globalize the Intifada’ and believes it should not be used because it has such dangerous implications. As Senator Schumer said after the death of Karen Diamond, the attack in Boulder continues to serve as a grave reminder of the deadly consequences of the rise in antisemitism,” a spokesperson for Schumer told JI.
“I don’t know what [Mamdani’s] position is on it, but I certainly think that the call to spread the intifada is the kind of incitement that can lead to extremist violence,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) told JI.
Blumenthal added that he is “an advocate of increasing the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which protects against terrorist hate crimes to synagogues, mosques, churches and similar community institutions, and so I’m deeply concerned about incitement and hate speech that can lead to hate crimes.”
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) said calls to globalize the intifada must be condemned.
“At a time when antisemitism is rising at alarming rates in the U.S., leaders of both parties have an obligation to stand up, speak clearly, and unequivocally condemn hatred and bigotry in every form,” Rosen said in a statement to JI. “The intifadas were periods marked by unspeakable violence and terror against innocent Israelis, and it should not be a difficult decision for anyone to condemn the antisemitic call to globalize these violent attacks. Our words matter — and in moments like this, silence is not an option.”
“I’m not a member of the Jewish community or a NYC voter. Personally, I would never use or defend this deeply troubling phrase,” Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) said in a statement to JI.
Some other Senate Democrats declined to comment or said they hadn’t been following Mamdani’s remarks.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who thus far has declined to endorse Mamdani, said in response to a listener call on WNYC last week that constituents she has spoken to are “alarmed” by Mamdani’s past comments.
“They are alarmed by past public statements. They are alarmed by past positions, particularly references to global jihad,” Gillibrand said. “This is a very serious issue because people that glorify the slaughter of Jews create fear in our communities. The global intifada is a statement that means ‘destroy Israel and kill all the Jews.’”
She emphasized that Mamdani needs to understand and accept that “globalize the intifada” is viewed by the Jewish community as, inherently, a call for violence against Jews.
“It doesn’t matter what meaning you have in your brain,” Gillibrand said, when pressed on Mamdani’s claims that he does not view the statement as a call for violence. “It is not how the word is received. When you use a word like ‘intifada’ to many Jewish Americans and Jewish New Yorkers, that means you are permissive for violence against Jews.”
“It is a harmful, hurtful, inappropriate word for anyone who wants to represent a city as diverse as New York City with 8 million people, and I would be very specific in these words, and I would say, ‘You may not use them again if you expect to represent everyone ever again because they are received as hateful and divisive and harmful, and that’s it,’” she continued.
She said that Mamdani, if elected, will “need to assure all New Yorkers that he will protect all Jews and protect houses of worship and protect funding for not-for-profits that meet the needs of these communities.”
She said she had spoken to Mamdani about Jewish community security issues last week, and said that he “agreed to work with me on this and to protect all residents. … I will work with him when he gets elected, if he gets elected, to make sure everyone is protected.”
Speaking on CNN on Monday, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) called the intifada slogan “deeply offensive” and said that “every elected official, without exception, should condemn it.”
Torres said that condemning the language was not the same as criminalizing it, responding to Mamdani’s own comments saying he did not believe he should “police” speech: “No one‘s advocating for imprisonment. I mean, every elected official has an obligation to condemn hatred, whether it‘s antisemitism or Islamophobia,” the New York congressman said.
Plus, Brooklyn’s new chosen duo
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
New York City Mayor Eric Adams attends a memorial for the 30th anniversary of the killing of teenager Ari Halberstam on the Brooklyn Bridge on March 1, 2024, in New York City.
Good Friday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at the coalition coalescing around New York City Mayor Eric Adams as he launches his independent bid for reelection, facing off against presumptive Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, and talk to senators following yesterday’s classified briefing on U.S. strikes on Iran. We report on Kentucky MAGA PAC’s seven-figure ad blitz targeting Rep. Thomas Massie, and spotlight basketball players Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf following their drafting by the Brooklyn Nets. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Peter Orszag, Gen. Dan Caine and Karen Paikin Barall.
For less-distracted reading over the weekend, browse this week’s edition of The Weekly Print, a curated print-friendly PDF featuring a selection of recent Jewish Insider and eJewishPhilanthropy stories, including: Schumer struggles to live up to ‘shomer’ designation amid pressure from his party; Sharansky: ‘The Iranian regime was exposed before its people as a paper tiger; and As Israeli staff delayed by sky closure, Jewish camps scramble for (hopefully) temporary replacements. Print the latest edition here.
What We’re Watching
- Senior administration officials are slated to hold a classified briefing with House lawmakers on the Israel-Iran war, a day after senators met for a similar briefing.
- The Senate will vote this evening on Sen. Tim Kaine’s (D-VA) war powers resolution.
- At the Aspen Ideas Festival tomorrow, The New York Times’ Tom Friedman is slated to speak in a session about diplomacy in the modern age, and again later in the day at a plenary that will also feature Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and CNN’s Fareed Zakaria. On Sunday, Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) and Dina Powell McCormick will speak about their recently released book, Who Believed in You? Later in the day, former Deputy National Security Advisor Anne Neuberger, former CIA Director David Petreaus and Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) will speak on a panel about the future of warfare. Also Sunday, former National Security Advisor John Bolton will speak about energy security amid a shifting geopolitical landscape, and the Carlyle Group’s David Rubenstein will speak in a sessions titled “Economics, Leadership and Legacy.”
- Today is the deadline for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to exit the New York City mayoral race and remove himself from the November ballot, following his loss to presumptive Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani in Tuesday’s Democratic primary. Cuomo is expected to stay on the “Fight & Deliver” line he created months ago as a contingency plan.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S JOSH KRAUSHAAR
Mainstream political and business leaders in New York City, including the organized Jewish community, will soon need to decide whether to coalesce against far-left presumed Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani — by rallying behind the candidacy of scandal-plagued Mayor Eric Adams despite his significant political baggage.
Adams, who is running as an independent in the race, appears to be the only alternative candidate capable of putting together a campaign rallying anti-socialists across the city to stop Mamdani. It won’t be easy, given Adams’ own low approval ratings and record of alleged corruption, but the makings of an anti-Mamdani coalition are there — at least on paper.
For Adams to win plurality support in a general election, it would require most Republicans to put partisanship aside and vote for Adams to stop the socialist, and hold onto most of the Black, Jewish voters and moderate Democratic voters who voted in large numbers for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the primary. Adams benefits from the name recognition of incumbency, and the potential to receive support from outside centrist groups spending on his behalf.
Keeping a bipartisan coalition of that nature will be challenging, especially given the mayor’s own unpopular record. It would require a number of lucky breaks, from Cuomo opting not to run in the general election (he appears to be staying on the ballot without an active campaign) to Republicans effectively nudging their voters to back Adams when there’s a Republican already on the ballot. But if the campaign is less about Adams and more about stopping left-wing radicalism on crime, the economy and antisemitism, it’s not implausible to see a campaign coalescing around a “block socialism, vote Adams” type of message.
Here’s the political math: Adams would have to win over most New York City Republicans — President Donald Trump won 30% of the citywide vote in 2024 — while remaining competitive with Democrats and winning over independents who weren’t eligible to participate in the Democratic primary.
MAYORAL MOVES
Moderate coalition forming to stop Mamdani, rallies behind Mayor Eric Adams
Days after New York state Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani’s stunning upset in the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, an emerging effort to block his path to Gracie Mansion is now beginning to materialize among a coalition of Jewish community leaders, business executives and Republican donors who have expressed alarm about his far-left policies and strident opposition to Israel. While still in its nascent stage, the anti-Mamdani coalition is coalescing behind Eric Adams, the embattled mayor who skipped the primary to run as an independent and launched his reelection bid on Thursday, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports.
Proactive push: Some opponents of Mamdani view Adams as the most effective vehicle to stop the presumptive Democratic nominee from winning in November, and are readying for a fight. Among other possible efforts now in the works is a “big push” to create an independent expenditure committee backed by real estate executives and other donors to boost Adams’ campaign, according to one consultant familiar with the matter. “That’s definitely going to happen,” the consultant told JI on Thursday, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing private deliberations. “People aren’t going to be taking this easy and just dealing with Mamdani,” he explained, noting the pro-Israel donor community could join the outside spending effort. “I’m sure some people are, but the people who have a lot to lose aren’t.”
Speaking out: Former Obama administration OMB Director Peter Orszag, the CEO of Lazard, sounded an alarm Thursday morning over the leftward direction of the Democratic Party, especially when it comes to its handling of antisemitism. “I’m saddened to say the Democratic Party is becoming increasingly antisemitic and anti-capitalism… Turning away from your principles and towards antisemitism never works,” Orszag said on CNBC’s “Money Movers” yesterday afternoon, Jewish Insider’s Jake Schlanger reports.
FAULT LINES ON FORDOW
Senators remain divided on success of U.S. strikes after classified Iran briefing
Senators remained divided about the success of the American military strikes on Iran’s nuclear program following a classified briefing on the subject from Cabinet officials on Thursday, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod and Emily Jacobs report.
Split response: Several Republicans hailed the strike as a success that had set Iran’s program back by a year or more, while some Democrats said it had barely set Iran’s nuclear program back and many others on both sides said that it’s too soon to accurately judge the attack’s success. The briefing, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and CIA Director John Ratcliffe, also does not appear to have dissuaded Democrats from pursuing plans to call up a war powers resolution to block further military action against Iran.
Read the full story here with comments from Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Steve Daines (R-MT), John Fetterman (D-PA), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mark Warner (D-VA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Chris Coons (D-DE), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA).
Speaking about the sanctions: Two Senate Republicans are urging the administration not to lift any sanctions on Iran in absence of real concessions from the regime, following comments from Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff indicating the U.S. had already rolled back some sanctions, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
BLUEGRASS BATTLE
New Trump-aligned super PAC begins $1M ad blitz against GOP Rep. Thomas Massie
A new super PAC launched by aides to President Donald Trump aimed at unseating Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) placed its first ads in a $1 million blitz in Kentucky targeting the isolationist lawmaker for his refusal to support key parts of the president’s agenda, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs and Marc Rod report. The Kentucky MAGA PAC was launched earlier this month by Chris LaCivita, who co-managed Trump’s 2024 campaign, and Tony Fabrizio, the president’s pollster, with the goal of defeating Massie in the GOP primary for his House seat next May. LaCivita told Axios at the time that the PAC would spend “whatever it takes” to defeat the Kentucky lawmaker.
Background: Trump and those in his orbit have been discussing the idea of primarying Massie for months, as the congressman criticized the president’s reconciliation package and his approach to foreign policy. Most recently, Massie decried Trump’s decision to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities as part of Israel’s military operation to destroy the regime’s nuclear program as unconstitutional.
GRAND PLAN
Trump, Netanyahu reportedly agree on plan to end Gaza war, expand Abraham Accords
President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to terms to end the war in Gaza and advance other shared interests in a telephone call held shortly after the U.S. struck nuclear sites in Iran earlier this week, according to a new report by Israel Hayom. A source familiar with the conversation told the right-leaning Israeli daily that Trump and Netanyahu were joined on the call by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, where the four determined that Israel would end the war in Gaza within two weeks, Jewish Insider’s Danielle Cohen reports.
Details: This process would include the exiling of what remains of Hamas’ leadership from Gaza, voluntary emigration for Gazans who elect to leave the territory and the release of the 50 hostages remaining in Gaza, less than half of whom are thought to be alive. Under the terms of the agreement, the UAE and Egypt, along with two other Arab countries, would jointly govern the Gaza Strip after Hamas’ removal. In addition, the Abraham Accords would be expanded to include Syria and Saudi Arabia, as well as additional Arab and Muslim states. The plan would also see U.S. recognition of “limited” Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank, while Israel would express support for a future two-state solution premised on reforms within the Palestinian Authority.
PMO comment: After releasing a general statement soon after the publication of the report saying that Israel’s victory against Iran “opens up an opportunity for a dramatic expansion of the peace agreements,” Netanyahu’s office denied the report this morning, saying, “The conversation described in the ‘Israel Today’ report did not happen. The diplomatic proposal described in the article was not presented to Israel and Israel obviously did not agree to it.”
CAMPUS CONCERNS
House Education Committee sends asks for more information from colleges after hearing
The House Education and Workforce Committee requested additional information about campus antisemitism from DePaul University, California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo) and Haverford College on Thursday, weeks after bringing their presidents before the committee for a hearing on campus antisemitism, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Insufficient answers: Rep. Tim Walberg’s (R-MI) letter to Haverford President Wendy Raymond — who repeatedly dodged questions from committee members throughout the hearing, refusing to discuss specifics — called out those evasive responses. “While the Committee appreciates your appearance on May 7th to discuss these concerns, your lack of transparency about how, if at all, Haverford has responded to antisemitic incidents on its campus was very disappointing.”
HEBREW HOOPS
The chosen people: Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf selected in the first round of the NBA draft
Brooklyn, if it’s possible, got even more Jewish on Wednesday night, when two members of the tribe were picked back-to-back by the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the NBA draft. The Nets tapped 6-foot-6 Israeli point guard Ben Saraf and Israeli American 7-footer Danny Wolf, who starred at the University of Michigan, with the No. 26 and 27 picks, marking the first time since 2006 that two Jewish players were selected in the same NBA draft, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.
Tribe rising: “Picking two Jewish players back-to-back is at worst a pretty kismet coincidence. They know what they’re doing,” James Hirsh, host of the Jewish sports podcast “Menschwarmers,” told JI, referring to the Nets’ front office. “This is a pretty cool thing to happen.” Hirsh said that the picks reflect a “growth of professional Jewish athletes in New York,” pointing to Max Fried, who signed with the New York Yankees as a starting pitcher last December. “It makes sense to have talent that your fan base is going to automatically support.”
Worthy Reads
Palestinian Rights, Palestinian Wrongs: In The Atlantic, Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib looks at the ways in which the Palestinian rights movement has been damaged by its support for Iran. “The Islamic Republic of Iran will never cease its meddling in the Palestinian issue, because Tehran needs the conflict to feed its propaganda machine. The reality is that a secure, stable, independent Palestine will remain a remote possibility as long as the Islamic Republic exists in its current form and is allowed to maintain its pro-Palestine pose. Only by calling out this evil regime and distancing from it can the pro-Palestine movement hope to be effective. … Many Iranians inside Iran today view Israel as their only hope of overthrowing the mullahs. Unfortunately, but understandably, many Iranians have come to resent the Palestinian cause — precisely because the regime has used it as a pretext to squander the country’s precious resources on its militia proxies in the name of fighting Israel.” [TheAtlantic]
The B-2s That Bind: In The Jerusalem Post, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee reflects on the U.S. role in attacking Iran’s nuclear program. “Like many others living in Israel, including some 700,000 Americans, we slept for an entire night for the first time in almost two weeks, not rousted from slumber by the piercing sounds of sirens or the booms of Iranian ballistic missiles flying in with the intention of fulfilling an Iranian promise to ‘wipe Israel off the face of the earth.’ They failed in THEIR promise. President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu succeeded in fulfilling THEIR promise that Iran would never have a nuclear bomb. Israel and America, and their two unflappable leaders, delivered more than a good night’s sleep to the people living in Israel. They delivered the gift of a humbled Iran to the world and celebrated in the capitals of every sane nation on earth. And they launched something bigger than destructive bombs. They launched what will be a realignment of the Middle East.” [JPost]
The Case for Raw Power: The New York Times’ David Brooks considers the ways in which the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian military and nuclear facilities were a “force for good” in the region. “For decades, both Israel and the United States were willing to tolerate the noose. Dismantling it seemed too hard and risky. That changed on Oct. 7. Israel learned, to its shock and dismay, that it lacked the capacity to anticipate and prevent murderous attacks. Suddenly the looming noose began to appear intolerable. … Occasionally I see lawn signs asserting that ‘war is not the answer,’ but here was a circumstance in which war was the answer. Here was a circumstance in which the raw power really mattered. Israel was able to beat the once feared Hezbollah because it is more effective and more powerful. Iran has responded feebly to the bombing raids not because of the kindness of its heart but because it is ineffective and less powerful.” [NYTimes]
Corbyn on the Hudson: The Jewish News’ Daniel Sugarman compares the ascension of Zohran Mamdani in New York to that of former U.K. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, and delivers a message to American Jews about what the future may portend. “Mamdani is a brilliant public speaker and a natural media performer; Corbyn is the opposite. Corbyn always appears fundamentally uncomfortable when speaking to those who do not agree with him; Mamdani, by contrast, seems to have an ability to connect with almost any audience – even a hostile one. But for the purposes of the Jewish community, the similarities hold. An anti-Zionist with a history of deeply troublesome public statements has won an important internal party contest. They have done so despite the publicly aired concerns of many Jews. If they win a forthcoming election, they will have a great deal of influence over aspects of day-to-day life.” [JewishNews]
Word on the Street
President Donald Trump threatened to sue CNN and The New York Times over the publication of a leaked Defense Intelligence Agency assessment that said the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran only set the country’s nuclear program back by a few months…
The Atlantic looks at the increasing divide between Trump and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, finding that the former Hawaii congresswoman “has so alienated Trump that she may be endangering the existence of her office altogether”…
The Wall Street Journal profiles Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who played a key role in the U.S.’ weekend strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities…
Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) introduced a bill to suspend assistance to South Africa and impose sanctions on South African officials over the country’s antisemitic and anti-Israel activity…
Sens. Rick Scott (R-FL) and Ashley Moody (R-FL) introduced a resolution honoring the four-year anniversary of the building collapse in Surfside, Fla….
Reps. French Hill (R-AR), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ), Mike Lawler (R-NY) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) introduced a bill to create a new designation for countries or non-state entities that wrongfully detain Americans, and require the administration to consider sanctions and other measures to respond…
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) is preparing to launch a campaign for governor of New York as polling shows her leading the Republican primary field…
The New York Times reports on preliminary partnership talks that took place earlier this year between Eric Trump, who runs the Trump Organization, and the owners of a hotel in Tel Aviv’s Sarona neighborhood; the neighborhood, located near Israel’s Defense Ministry headquarters, suffered damage during Iran’s ballistic missile attack on June 13…
France confirmed that it participated in efforts to intercept Iranian drones fired at Israel earlier this month…
The Wall Street Journal explores the “dramatic realignment” of the Middle East following Israeli and American strikes on Iran…
The New York Times looks at the U.S.’ Logistical Support Area Jenkins in Saudi Arabia, a little-known base in the Red Sea that has seen an influx in activity over the last year…
Israel’s Finance Ministry estimated that the 12-day war with Iran caused $3 billion in damage, largely costs associated with rebuilding or repairing damaged buildings and paying compensation to affected businesses…
“We Will Dance Again,” a documentary about Hamas’ attack on the Nova music festival on Oct. 7, 2023, won the Outstanding Current Affairs Documentary at the 46th Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards…
The State Department approved $30 million in funding for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation; the newly created aid group tapped Israeli restaurateur Shahar Segal as its Israeli media spokesperson…
The Sweden Democrats party apologized for its past Nazi affiliations and “clear expressions of antisemitism” as it seeks to align itself with mainstream parties ahead of next year’s national elections…
Karen Paikin Barall, who was previously vice president of government relations at the Jewish Federations of North America, is joining the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law as chief policy officer…
The New York Times spotlights the wedding of Jackie Hornung and Ben Jacob, childhood sweethearts who met at summer camp, whose dog, Lumi, has become an internet sensation…
Ad man Mortimer Matz, the co-founder of Nathan’s annual hot dog eating contest, died at 100…
Young adult author Susan Beth Pfeffer, whose more than six dozen books included themes about sensitive subjects for teenagers, died at 77…
Pic of the Day
Elon Gold (left), Hilary Helstein, Lorna Wolens, Jay Leno and Jonah Lees attended the opening night gala premiere last night of “Midas Man” at the 20th Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Birthdays
British historian and award-winning author, he is a great-great-nephew of Sir Moses Montefiore, Simon Sebag Montefiore turns 60…
FRIDAY: Co-founder of Taglit Birthright, the first chairman of the United Jewish Communities and former owner of MLB’s Montreal Expos, Charles Bronfman turns 94… One-half of the husband-wife screenwriting and television production team, Richard Allen Shapiro turns 91… Technion graduate, he is regarded as the founding father of unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) technology, Abraham Karem turns 88… Brooklyn resident, Meyer Roth… Former member of both houses of the Pennsylvania Legislature, Constance Hess “Connie” Williams turns 81… Former commander of the Israeli Navy, head of the Shin Bet and member of Knesset, Amihai “Ami” Ayalon turns 80… First woman ordained as a rabbi by HUC-JIR, Sally Jane Priesand turns 79… Author of fiction and nonfiction books, she is the founding president of the Mayyim Hayyim mikveh in Newton, Mass., Anita Diamant turns 74… New Jersey resident, Kenneth R. Blankfein… Minority leader of the Florida State Senate, Lori Berman turns 67… Managing director at Osprey Foundation, Louis Boorstin… and his twin brother, principal at Panther Works and senior advisor at Albright Stonebridge Group, Robert O. Boorstin, both turn 66… Southern California-based accountant, Susan M. Feldman… Creator of multiple TV series including “Felicity,” “Alias,” “Lost” and “Fringe,” and director and producer of many films, Jeffrey Jacob (J.J.) Abrams turns 59… President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland (Oregon) since 2010, Marc N. Blattner turns 56… South Florida resident, Gordon M. Gerstein… Reporter for The New York Times on the climate desk, Lisa Friedman… Member of the Knesset for the United Torah Judaism alliance, Yoel Yaakov Tessler turns 52… Senior fellow and director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute, Ilya Shapiro… Israeli judoka, best known for his default victory at the 2004 Summer Olympics when his Iranian opponent refused to fight him, Ehud Vaks turns 46… Director of stakeholder advocacy at Ford Motor, Caroline Elisabeth Adler Morales… Singer and musician, best known for being Avril Lavigne’s lead guitarist, Evan David Taubenfeld turns 42… Executive talent partner at Greylock Partners, Holly Rose Faith… National security advisor to U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Charles Dunst…
SATURDAY: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award-winning actor, movie director, composer and comedian, born Melvin James Kaminsky, Mel Brooks turns 99… Laguna Woods, Calif., resident, she is a retired hospital administrator, Saretta Platt Berlin… Owner of NYC’s United Equities Companies and retired chairman of Berkshire Bank, Moses M. Marx turns 90… Former member of Congress for 16 years and now a distinguished fellow and president emerita of the Wilson Center, Jane Harman turns 80… Political consultant, community organizer and author, he is married to Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Robert Creamer turns 78… Novelist, journalist, conservative commentator and senior fellow of the Claremont Institute, Mark Helprin turns 78… Author of crime fiction for both adults and children, Peter Abrahams turns 78… Documentary producer and adjunct associate professor at USC, James Ruxin turns 77… Professor of mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley, Kenneth Alan Ribet turns 77… Shareholder in the Tampa law office of Carlton Fields, Nathaniel L. Doliner turns 76… Rabbi and historian, he is the author of a 2017 book Jewish Justices of the Supreme Court: From Brandeis to Kagan, David G. Dalin turns 76… Former member of the California state Senate following two terms in the state Assembly, Martin Jeffrey “Marty” Block turns 75… Retired partner at Chicago-based accounting firm of Morrison & Morrison, Mark Zivin… Founding partner of NYC law firm Kasowitz Benson Torres, Marc Kasowitz turns 73… Journalist for Haaretz, Amira Hass turns 69… Chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation, Brian L. Roberts turns 66… Rabbi of the Har Bracha community in the Shomron and Rosh Yeshiva of the hesder yeshiva there, Rabbi Eliezer Melamed turns 64… U.S. special envoy for Holocaust issues at the State Department, Ellen J. Germain turns 63… Principal of GPS Investment Partners, Marc Spilker turns 61… Actress and singer, Jessica Hecht turns 60… Former diplomatic correspondent for Al-Monitor, now reporting on Substack, Laura Rozen… Novelist and short story writer, Aimee Bender turns 56… Israeli actress residing in Los Angeles, Ayelet Zurer turns 56… Centibillionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, owner of X, Elon Musk turns 54… Former member of Knesset as a member of the Labor party / Zionist Union, Michal Biran turns 47… Toltzy Kornbluh… and her twin sister, Chany Stark… Founder and CEO of NY Koen Group, Naum Koen turns 44… Associate at Latham & Watkins, Molly Rosen… Mark Winkler…
SUNDAY: Baltimore area gastroenterologist, he is an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Marshall S. Bedine, M.D…. Chairman of Carnival Corporation and owner of the NBA’s Miami Heat, Micky Arison turns 76… Rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Brisk in Jerusalem, Rabbi Avraham Yehoshua Soloveitchik turns 76… Former assistant surgeon general of the U.S. and deputy assistant secretary of HHS for women’s health, Susan Jane Blumenthal, M.D. turns 73… Former SVP and counsel at Columbus, Ohio-based L Brands, Bruce A. Soll… CEO of two firms including Aliya Marketing Group, Joshua Karlin… Israeli actress, screenwriter, playwright and film director, Hanna Azoulay-Hasfari turns 65… Attorney general of Israel from 2016 to 2022, Avichai Mandelblit turns 62… Founder and president of Medallion Financial Corp., Andrew Murstein turns 61… Screenwriter, director and producer, he has won nine Emmy Awards for his work on AMC’s “Mad Men” and HBO’s “The Sopranos,” Matthew Hoffman Weiner turns 60… Senior rabbi of Toronto’s Beth Tzedec Congregation, Rabbi Steven C. Wernick turns 58… Theater, film and television screenwriter, his credits include the 2017 film “Wonder Woman,” Allan Heinberg turns 58… Israeli political consultant and former chief of staff to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Ari Harow turns 52… Consultant, facilitator, trainer and coach, Nanette Rochelle Fridman… Rabbi of The Young Israel of Bal Harbour (Florida), Gidon Moskovitz… Film and television director and writer, she is known for writing and directing the films “Obvious Child” and “Landline,” Gillian Robespierre turns 47… Former member of the UK Parliament for the Labour party, she is now a member of the House of Lords, Baroness Ruth Smeeth turns 46… Israeli actor and model, Yehuda Levi turns 46… President and dean of Phoenix-based Valley Beit Midrash and author of 28 books, Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz… Partner at FGS Global, Andrew Duberstein… Pitcher for Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, he then played in the Mexican League until last month, Charles Irvin “Bubby” Rossman turns 33… Campaign finance consultant, David Wolf… Steven Kohn… Sara Sansone… Fred Gruber…
Adams would have to win over most New York City Republicans while remaining competitive with Democrats and winning over independents who weren’t eligible to participate in the Democratic primary
Yuki Iwamura-Pool/Getty Images
Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani
