That many Jews voted for Trump?
A major question that was debated after the 2024 election was whether American Jews had actually shifted right, or whether it remained a core Democratic base group. Pew now has the answers - and they're surprising.
35% of American Jews for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential elections, compared to 63% for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, in the most pro-Republican vote from Jews since the 1988 elections for George HW Bush, according to Pew. Moreover, some 31% of Jews now identify as Republicans.
After the elections, liberal and conservative Jewish news outlets debated whether Jews had shifted right in these elections as a whole, or whether it was simply a matter of Orthodox Jews or Jews in specific areas. Pew's expanded voting analysis of the 2024 voting pool suggests a broad shift, of the sort not seen for over 30 years.
Multiple reasons are possible for this, first and foremost the increase in the number of Orthodox Jews but also the sharp turn of the Democratic party and its voters against Israel, to the point that Democratic candidate Kamala Harris reportedly refused to nominate popular Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro for fear of alienating anti-Israel voters.
The Republican Jewish Coalition had this to say on X today (Monday) on the numbers:
"The results are clear: President Trump received 35% of the national Jewish vote, the highest percentage for a Republican for President since the 1980's, and an historic hemorrhaging of support from the Democrats.
"The 2024 election represents a 15%(!) swing in President Trump's favor in the Jewish community. Notably, 31% of Jewish voters identified as Republicans in the Pew survey, which is the highest percentage on record.
"The RJC is proud to have played a significant role in driving more Jewish voters to President Trump and the GOP, and our work continues!
"Thank you for your attention to this matter."