Trump camp hopes Mideast pacts translate to Jewish support
Jewish American voters have leaned Democratic for decades, but Republicans are hoping the recent steps toward normalized relations between Gulf states and Israel — which Trump vigorously touted earlier this month — bolster his appeal to Jewish voters.
With battleground states like Pennsylvania, Florida and Michigan decided in 2016 by fewer than a combined 200,000 votes, any loss of the Jewish support by Democratic nominee Joe Biden could be pivotal.
“Democrats like to say they have a majority of the Jewish vote,” said Republican Jewish Coalition executive director Matt
Brooks, whose group is spending $10 million to boost Trump and other GOP candidates in battleground states. “They do — but that’s not what this game is about.”
Brooks’ group is aiming for 300,000 voter contacts in swing states, focusing the bulk of its spending on Trump while also aiding some GOP congressional hopefuls. Last week’s signing of the Israel-United Arab Emirates agreement, which Bahrain later joined, “proves that the president does have a vision” for working toward peace in the Middle East, Brooks said.
The Trump campaign is ramping up its own efforts as well, launching a “Jewish Voices for Trump” initiative in September centering on his support for Israel. Co-chairs include casino mogul and conservative donor Sheldon Adelson and former White House aide Boris Epshteyn.
“President Trump is a champion of the Jewish people and the greatest ally the State of Israel has ever had,” Epshteyn, who also advises Trump’s campaign, said in a statement.
But whether Trump can gain ground with Jewish voters on the strength of his foreign policy agenda remains an unanswered question. According to a Pew Research Center poll conducted last year, 42% of Jewish Americans said Trump’s policies favor the Israelis too much, while 47% said he strikes the right balance between Israelis and Palestinians.
And most Jewish voters broke