New York Times: 90% of Vote Went to Romney in Some Orthodox Jewish Communities
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2012 Presidential jewish Vote Boro Park Presidential election Ezra Friedlander new york times New York Times Jews New York Times presidential election Obama Jewish Vote Orthodox 90% vote Orthodox Vote presidential election Romney Jewish Vote
The New York Times published a map Saturday of precinct-by-precinct voting results from the recent presidential election. There were few surprises, the city resoundingly backed President Obama. Where this support wavered was in communities with large Orthodox Jewish populations.
“Mr. Obama’s worst precincts were in Orthodox Jewish areas like Ocean Parkway and Williamsburg in Brooklyn and Kew Gardens Hills in Queens. In a few precincts in Borough Park, Brooklyn, Mr. Romney won more than 90 percent of the vote,” the accompanying text said.
Ezra Friedlander, an Orthodox Jew who lives in Brooklyn and is the CEO of the PR firm The Freidlander Group says, “I wouldn’t say the result is surprising. I wouldn’t say I expected 90% in some precincts, but it is a conservative community in general.”
What Friedlander does find surprising is that many in the community, where, as the New York Times wrote “college degrees are rare and poverty rates have reached 43 percent,” rely on Democratic programs while still voting Republican. “In the short term many of the social programs advocated by the Democrats would be more beneficial to them–medicaid, section 8 housing, etc.”
The results were similar to those in the 2008 election which pitted Obama against John McCain. But Orthodox populations continue to grow, whereas more liberal Jewish communities that back Obama continue to diminish. According to The New York Times 40 percent of Jews in the city identify themselves as Orthodox, an increase from 33 percent in 2002; 74 percent of all Jewish children in the city are Orthodox. Reform and Conservative movements each lost about 40,000 members between 2002 and 2011.
“The community is cetainly proving it is one to be reckoned with,” says Friedlander.
10:25 pm
So the hypocrites accept that which they can choose to eschew…then vote against those who helped to provide by voting to strengthen an entity which they, in their xenophobia lives, have little contact and a seeming unawareness of the sea of anti-Semitism that thrives in that Red Republican Sea that they so willingly embrace
Where? Where ? On that vast map of Red would they feel comfortable living as Jews-other than in the Blue islands in that Red Sea.
12:19 pm
Jerry, what’s hypocritical about voting your values or conscience over your wallet? Why shouldn’t Jews vote against someone whose administration isn’t a strong supporter of Israel and for someone who has a strong personal relationship with the current Israeli prime minister?
Much more importantly, why your irrational hatred of Orthodox Jews and Republicans?
3:50 pm
GOOD FOR OUR ORTHODOX BRETHREN. THESE PEOPLE SIMPLY “DO THE MATH.”
OBAMA SPEAKS, THINKS AND ACTS LIKE AN ENEMY OF ISRAEL, SO, THEORETICALLY, ALL
JEWS SHOULD HAVE VOTED FOR ROMNEY, BUT AS WE ALL KNOW, THERE’S A SERIOUS
ILLNESS WITHIN MUCH OF THE JEWISH COMMUNITY, MORE VIRULENT THAN TAY SACHS.
IT’S CALLED “SYMBIOSIS WITH THE DEMOCRAT PARTY.”