Jewish activists get out the vote in bid to topple anti-Israel ‘Squad’ Rep. Jamaal Bowman
An unprecedented “Vote Shabbat” campaign is underway to galvanize Jews in Westchester County to help vote out lefty anti-Israel “Squad” Rep. Jamaal Bowman and elect moderate County Executive George Latimer in the June 25 16th District Democratic primary.
The name of the initiative refers to the fact that early voting begins Saturday, during the Jewish Sabbath — or in Hebrew, “Shabbat.”
Of the Westchester Democrats who have already requested early mail-in ballots, 40% are Jewish voters, a percentage that far outstrips their proportion of the electorate, according to Teach New York Coalition Founder and CEO Maury Litwack.
“This is a moment in time for the Jewish community,” Litwack told The Post, citing recent instances of public antisemitism across New York and the US.
“The request for mail ballots shows high interest in the race,” he added. “People are itching to vote, excited to vote. They’re not just putting it in their calendar to vote. They’re voting and they’re telling their friends to vote.”
The campaign, organized by the Jewish Orthodox Union with leaders of three dozen local synagogues, is officially non-partisan, but Litwak said local Jewish voters “don’t feel their voices are being heard” by elected officials — a clear dig at Bowman, whose 16th District covers much of Westchester and portions of the northern Bronx.
“There’s a feeling among Jewish voters that they’re not being represented and they want to be heard at the ballot box,” he noted.
Rabbi Evan Hoffman, past president of the Westchester Board of Rabbis and head of the Anshe Sholom synagogue in New Rochelle, is a key figure in the voter mobilization effort.
“I’ll be voting for George Latimer,” said Hoffman, adding that “100%” of people in his orbit will do the same.
“Bowman is opposed to Israel and, more subtly, to the Jews in his own district,” the rabbi said.
Bowman, who polls show to be trailing Latimer by double-digits, has outraged Israel supporters and Jewish activists for his statements regarding the US ally and its war against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
The two-term incumbent, 48, has been endorsed by the anti-Israel Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which supports the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement against the Jewish state, a drive many pro-Israel activists deem antisemitic.
During his May 26 endorsement interview with DSA, Bowman said he personally supports the BDS movement, clashing with his public position.
“BDS is a nonviolent protest opportunity to hold Israel accountable,” Bowman said during the interview, according to excerpts reported by the New York Times.
“And I think Israel needs to be held accountable,” the congressman added. “And so I’m ready, willing and able to collaborate with you all to figure out what’s the best way to do that.”
Bowman also said he now opposes US funding of Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system, for which he voted months after taking office in 2021.
He said he initially voted for the funding to show his constituents he wasn’t against the Jewish people, telling DSA members: “I didn’t want my ‘no’ vote to be misinterpreted as ‘I want Jews to be killed.'”
But the Democrat now says Israel is committing “genocide” in Gaza in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack which killed around 1,200 people — including 33 Americans.
“There’s no way I could support any of that, because there’s a genocide happening in Gaza,” Bowman told the socialists.
During a recent debate against Latimer, Bowman argued that the phrase “From the river to the sea” — which is generally interpreted as a call to eradicate Israel and its people — wasn’t hateful.
Latimer countered that the phrase is commonly understood as antisemitic and genocidal.
Bowman was also captured on video last November calling Israel an “apartheid” state and angrily claiming reports of rapes and child murders during the Oct. 7 attack were a “lie.”
He later walked back the sex abuse comment after being criticized for mouthing Hamas propaganda.
The Bowman campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
