Jewish vote strengthens for Obama

WASHINGTON — Jewish voters appear to be "coming home" to the Democratic Party, in the words of one political strategist.

A Gallup poll released on Oct. 23 had Sen. Barack Obama winning 74 percent of the Jewish vote, up 13 points from July.

A Quinnipiac University poll released the same day has Obama beating out Sen. John McCain among Florida Jews by a more than three-to-one margin.

Jews comprise less than 3 percent of the U.S. population, but are statistically significant enough to affect key battleground states like Florida.

"There is an intense focus this year," said Ira Forman, executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, on Thursday. He was part of a panel of scholars and activists, including former Middle East envoy Dennis Ross, who discussed the recent shift and debated the impact of the Jewish vote at a Georgetown University event on Thursday.

Republicans have been making inroads among Jewish voters in recent years, and exit polls show support for Republican presidential candidates doubling to 22 percent from 1992 to 2004.

A poll published by the American Jewish Committee in September had Obama tracking worse among Jews than any Democratic candidate since Jimmy Carter.

Forman downplayed that finding, saying the media is simply hunting for a trend.

"Jews voting Republican is a 'man bites dog' story," he said.

Ross took the opportunity to make the case for Obama, saying he was moved to endorse the Illinois senator after traveling with him in the Middle East and Europe.

"I made my choice even before the financial meltdown," he said. "Senator Obama is a rare talent."

Ross, who has worked with Republican and Democratic presidents to mediate the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, said Obama's leadership can help rectify America's poor strategic position.

"When we sit on the sidelines, someone else is going to fill the vacuum," he said. "We can't afford four more years of that."

The panel attracted an audience of a few dozen people. One listener booed Morris Amitay, a McCain supporter and founder of the Washington Political Action Committee, who suggested Obama may have been an affirmative action pick at Harvard Law School.

Amitay said he is swayed by McCain's experience and long-standing support for Israel. While Obama relies on foreign policy experts, he said, the Arizona senator is an expert himself.

"I think we're taking too much of a chance with Barack Obama," he said.

Panelists agreed that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has hurt McCain's chances with Jewish voters.

Jacques Berlinerblau, director of Georgetown's Program for Jewish Civilization, said Palin's us-versus-them rhetoric recalls the religious right wing of the Republican party, which has traditionally turned off Jews.

"Nothing in what she says is in any way anti-Semetic," he said. "We almost have a subconscious level of resistance to her."

An American Jewish Committee poll found 54 percent of respondents unhappy with the selection of Palin, while only 15 percent disapproved of Sen. Joe Biden as Obama's running mate.